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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. spell — magic
  5. game — a match
  6. game — wild animals
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. spell — a short time
  9. file — a document
  10. perch — the fish
  11. wind — moving air
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. track — a song
  14. file — a line of people
  15. track — to keep track
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. track — a path
  18. file — a tool
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. spell — letters
  21. wind — moving air
  22. ball — a great time
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. ball — a dance

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