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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. bat — the animal
  6. hand — help
  7. pass — a permit
  8. charge — a price
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. wake — a trail
  11. fall — the season
  12. fall — to drop
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. pound — a weight
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. charge — electricity
  20. hand — in cards
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. wind — moving air
  24. charge — in control

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