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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. ground — the earth
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — in cards
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. track — a path
  8. wind — moving air
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. track — to keep track
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. ground — crushed
  15. track — a song
  16. bark — to shout
  17. wind — moving air
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. ground — a position
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. arm — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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