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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 120 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. wind — moving air
  3. present — there
  4. spring — a coil
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. track — a song
  9. present — the time now
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. chest — of your body
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. track — a path
  17. spring — the season
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. chest — a box
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. track — to keep track
  22. pass — a permit
  23. spring — of water
  24. bowl — to roll

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