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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. net — for catching
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. squash — to crush
  6. net — in sport
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. net — after costs
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. field — for sport
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. field — a subject
  17. field — farmland
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. tube — a container
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. squash — the sport
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. tube — the underground

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