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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rush — hurry
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. chip — for betting
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wind — moving air
  13. rule — a law
  14. rule — government
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. bat — the animal
  21. chip — to eat
  22. pound — a weight
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. fork — in a road

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