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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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. tube — a container
  4. spring — the season
  5. spell — magic
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. spell — letters
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. board — a committee
  12. spring — of water
  13. chip — to eat
  14. perch — the fish
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. tube — the underground
  19. board — to get on
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. chip — for betting

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