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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. spell — a short time
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. kick — in football
  6. chair — a leader
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. spell — magic
  11. field — a subject
  12. deal — to handle
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. wind — moving air
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. spell — letters
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. stand — to bear
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. field — farmland
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. field — for sport
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. kick — with a leg

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