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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. net — after costs
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. mug — a face
  9. plane — a tool
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. rush — hurry
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. mug — a cup
  15. wind — moving air
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. net — in sport
  18. game — a match
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. game — wild animals
  23. net — for catching
  24. mug — to rob

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