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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 124 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. spring — the season
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. pitch — completely
  8. kid — child
  9. current — electric
  10. current — of water
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. wind — moving air
  13. spring — a coil
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. current — happening now
  17. rock — a stone
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. spring — of water
  20. wind — moving air
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — letters
  23. rock — music
  24. spell — magic

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