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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. spring — of water
  3. dip — to sink
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. wind — moving air
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. ground — the earth
  8. net — after costs
  9. drill — a practice
  10. ground — crushed
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. net — for catching
  13. drill — the tool
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. chip — to eat
  16. ground — a position
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. spring — a coil
  19. drill — army training
  20. net — in sport
  21. spring — the season
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. chip — for betting
  24. ruler — for measuring

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com