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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 116 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. staff — a stick
  5. spring — of water
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. spring — a coil
  8. present — there
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. pop — music
  13. pop — to visit
  14. staff — employees
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. wound — an injury
  18. present — the time now
  19. staff — employees
  20. spring — the season
  21. wind — moving air
  22. pop — soda
  23. present — a gift
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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