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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. spell — a short time
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rock — music
  7. rush — hurry
  8. bound — obliged
  9. rock — a stone
  10. bound — certain
  11. last — finally
  12. rule — a law
  13. spell — magic
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hand — help
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bound — tied together
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. rule — government
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. spell — letters
  24. rock — to move gently

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