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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. net — in sport
  3. clip — to cut
  4. net — after costs
  5. mark — a trace
  6. net — for catching
  7. wind — moving air
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. clip — a video
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. key — the most important part
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. foot — a measure
  16. key — for a lock
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. clip — for paper
  20. mark — a grade
  21. key — in music
  22. plane — a tool
  23. mark — to pay attention
  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