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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wind — moving air
  4. rest — what's left
  5. field — farmland
  6. cell — a phone
  7. spring — a coil
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. field — a subject
  10. rest — what's left
  11. spring — the season
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. cell — in biology
  14. spring — of water
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. rule — a law
  17. snap — to click
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — a trace
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. field — for sport
  22. rest — a break
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — to rule out

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