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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 116 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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  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. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wind — moving air
  3. board — a committee
  4. staff — employees
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. spring — the season
  8. rest — what's left
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. board — to get on
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. wound — an injury
  15. staff — employees
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. rest — a break
  20. wound — an injury
  21. kick — in football
  22. staff — a stick
  23. board — a flat piece
  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