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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. swing — in golf
  3. net — after costs
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. bark — to shout
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. shower — rain
  10. net — for catching
  11. shower — to wash
  12. net — in sport
  13. race — a contest
  14. swing — to play on
  15. race — the arms race
  16. swing — music
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. race — humankind
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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