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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. content — the amount
  3. track — to keep track
  4. wind — moving air
  5. net — in sport
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. net — after costs
  9. track — a path
  10. wind — moving air
  11. shower — to wash
  12. march — music
  13. track — a song
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. rock — a stone
  16. march — the month
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. march — the month
  20. net — for catching
  21. rock — music
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. shower — rain
  24. content — happy

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