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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  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. coach — a trainer
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. fall — to drop
  5. wake — a trail
  6. fall — the season
  7. hand — help
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. wind — moving air
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. mate — a partner
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. hand — in cards
  16. squash — to crush
  17. plane — a tool
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. mate — a friend
  20. fall — to drop
  21. squash — the sport
  22. mate — to breed
  23. hand — part of the body
  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