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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stem — to come from
  7. game — wild animals
  8. craft — a skill
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. rush — hurry
  11. ground — crushed
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. game — a match
  14. ground — the earth
  15. saw — the tool
  16. craft — boats
  17. saw — the tool
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. ground — a position
  24. wind — moving air

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