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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. clip — to cut
  4. mug — a cup
  5. clip — a video
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cold — not warm
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. shower — rain
  10. mug — a face
  11. shower — to wash
  12. craft — a skill
  13. craft — boats
  14. wind — moving air
  15. mug — to rob
  16. clip — for paper
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — an illness
  24. hide — to keep secret

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