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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. charge — in control
  3. saw — the tool
  4. swing — music
  5. shower — to wash
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. saw — the tool
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. wind — moving air
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. swing — in golf
  14. charge — a price
  15. wound — an injury
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. mate — a partner
  18. swing — to play on
  19. charge — electricity
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. wind — moving air
  23. mate — a friend
  24. mate — to breed

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