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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. wound — an injury
  6. charge — electricity
  7. file — a tool
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. toast — bread
  10. swing — to play on
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wind — moving air
  13. charge — a price
  14. shower — rain
  15. file — a document
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. swing — music
  20. charge — in control
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. swing — in golf
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. file — a line of people

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