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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hand — in cards
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. cue — for pool
  6. rest — a break
  7. cue — a signal
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. wind — moving air
  11. land — ground
  12. shower — to wash
  13. land — a country
  14. shower — rain
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. wind — moving air
  19. rest — what's left
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. cue — a hint
  24. rest — what's left

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