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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  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 — moving air
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. chest — of your body
  6. stand — to bear
  7. hand — help
  8. chest — of your body
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. hand — in cards
  13. rash — hasty
  14. chest — a box
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. can — a tin
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. can — to be able to
  21. rash — a series
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. can — a tin
  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