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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 116 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. field — a subject
  4. track — a path
  5. stock — shares
  6. field — farmland
  7. hand — help
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. sharp — clever
  12. track — to keep track
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. stock — goods
  17. field — for sport
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. plane — a tool
  21. track — a song
  22. hand — in cards
  23. wind — moving air
  24. plane — in geometry

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