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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 120 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. sharp — clever
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. march — the month
  11. drill — a practice
  12. pass — a permit
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. drill — the tool
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. wind — moving air
  19. march — the month
  20. drill — army training
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. march — music
  24. straw — dry grass

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