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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. wind — moving air
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a leader
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a line of people
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. file — a tool
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. pound — a weight
  13. bank — for money
  14. rush — hurry
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bank — of a river
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bank — for money
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. wind — moving air

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