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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. spell — magic
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — to grow
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. bulb — for light
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. game — a match
  19. spell — letters
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bulb — for light
  23. spell — a short time
  24. game — wild animals

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