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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. march — the month
  3. wound — an injury
  4. march — music
  5. plane — a tool
  6. wound — an injury
  7. game — wild animals
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. mug — a face
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. mug — a cup
  13. wind — moving air
  14. snap — to click
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. game — a match
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. mug — to rob
  19. land — ground
  20. land — a country
  21. land — to come down
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. march — the month
  24. wind — moving air

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