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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. row — a line
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. row — to paddle
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. rash — hasty
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. branch — a division
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. rush — hurry
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. fine — all right
  22. rash — a series
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. fine — high quality

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