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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. fine — all right
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fine — high quality
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. staff — employees
  17. wake — a trail
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. cold — not warm
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — the season
  24. fall — to drop

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