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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. wind — moving air
  4. lean — thin
  5. pop — music
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. net — after costs
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. pop — to visit
  12. net — for catching
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. lean — to bend
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. net — in sport
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rule — a law
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. rule — government

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