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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. wake — a trail
  3. ball — a great time
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — of water
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. wind — moving air
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. ball — a dance
  11. can — to be able to
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. scale — size or range
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wind — moving air
  20. can — a tin
  21. plane — a tool
  22. spring — the season
  23. can — a tin
  24. scale — in music

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