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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pound — a weight
  3. court — of law
  4. wind — moving air
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wound — an injury
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wind — moving air
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. snap — to click
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. court — for sport
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. court — of a king
  24. wake — before a funeral

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