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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 works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — for sport
  4. key — for a lock
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cue — a hint
  7. field — a subject
  8. wound — an injury
  9. key — in music
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. face — to confront
  12. key — the most important part
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. wind — moving air
  16. cue — for pool
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. saw — the tool
  19. wound — an injury
  20. face — to point toward
  21. cue — a signal
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. face — part of the head
  24. wave — with your hand

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