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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. clip — to cut
  5. cue — a hint
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. cue — a signal
  8. clip — a video
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. bear — the animal
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. cue — for pool
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. wind — moving air
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. rash — a series
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bear — the animal
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  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