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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 120 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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — a law
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. spring — the season
  8. lean — thin
  9. spring — a coil
  10. field — farmland
  11. rule — government
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. spring — of water
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. tube — the underground
  20. wind — moving air
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. lean — to bend

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