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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. snap — to click
  5. game — a match
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. suit — to fit
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. ball — a great time
  11. suit — in cards
  12. file — a tool
  13. suit — clothes
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a document
  16. fork — in a road
  17. game — wild animals
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. ball — a dance

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