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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pound — a weight
  3. bark — to shout
  4. spell — a short time
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. spell — magic
  8. rock — a stone
  9. wind — moving air
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. rock — music
  18. cold — not warm
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. cold — an illness
  23. spell — letters
  24. plane — a tool

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