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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bear — the animal
  4. cap — of ice
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cap — a lid
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. wind — moving air
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. spell — letters
  12. key — in music
  13. row — a line
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. bear — the animal
  16. cap — a hat
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. wind — moving air
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — magic
  21. fine — high quality
  22. key — for a lock
  23. row — to paddle
  24. key — the most important part

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