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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. swing — music
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. land — ground
  7. board — a committee
  8. field — a subject
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fine — all right
  11. land — a country
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. wind — moving air
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — for sport
  18. fine — high quality
  19. swing — to play on
  20. swing — in golf
  21. wake — a trail
  22. board — to get on
  23. land — to come down
  24. board — a flat piece

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