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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. bound — certain
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — happy
  6. bound — obliged
  7. tube — the underground
  8. bound — tied together
  9. wind — moving air
  10. swing — in golf
  11. swing — to play on
  12. tube — a container
  13. land — to come down
  14. land — a country
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. content — the amount
  17. cap — of ice
  18. land — ground
  19. cap — a hat
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. wind — moving air
  23. cap — a lid
  24. swing — music

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