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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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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. wind — moving air
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. clip — for paper
  8. mug — to rob
  9. date — the fruit
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. clip — a video
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. clip — to cut
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. wind — moving air
  17. land — a country
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. mug — a face
  20. land — to come down
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. mug — a cup
  24. land — ground

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