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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. wind — moving air
  4. band — a ring
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. roll — a cake
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. snap — to click
  10. saw — the tool
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. bound — certain
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. band — a music group
  15. roll — a list
  16. scale — size or range
  17. bound — tied together
  18. saw — the tool
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. bound — obliged
  22. wind — moving air
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. scale — in 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