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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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. march — music
  4. drill — army training
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. lean — to bend
  8. march — the month
  9. swing — in golf
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. swing — to play on
  12. perch — the fish
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. swing — music
  15. scale — in music
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. lean — thin
  18. march — the month
  19. scale — size or range
  20. drill — a practice
  21. drill — the tool
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. wind — moving air

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