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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. board — to get on
  4. wind — moving air
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. rash — a series
  7. wind — moving air
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. prune — to trim
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. board — a committee
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. staff — employees
  15. file — a document
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. staff — a stick
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. prune — to trim
  21. staff — employees
  22. file — a tool
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. file — a line of people

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