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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pop — soda
  3. wind — moving air
  4. fall — the season
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. fall — to drop
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pop — to visit
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pop — music
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wound — an injury
  17. kid — to tease
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — of your body
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. fall — to drop
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. kid — child

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