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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. mate — to breed
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bear — the animal
  5. season — in sport
  6. mate — a friend
  7. last — finally
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. last — final
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. game — a match
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. wind — moving air
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. last — to go on
  18. season — of the year
  19. bear — the animal
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. mate — a partner
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. game — wild animals

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