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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. craft — a skill
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. wind — moving air
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. key — in music
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. key — the most important part
  14. wound — an injury
  15. shower — rain
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mark — a grade
  18. wound — an injury
  19. key — for a lock
  20. craft — boats
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. shower — to wash
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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