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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 116 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. cell — a phone
  6. charge — in control
  7. charge — electricity
  8. hand — help
  9. saw — the tool
  10. cell — in biology
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bear — the animal
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. hand — in cards
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. charge — a price
  24. bear — the animal

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