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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 120 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. can — a tin
  3. club — for golf
  4. club — a group
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. craft — a skill
  8. bass — low music
  9. can — to be able to
  10. wind — moving air
  11. scale — size or range
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — an injury
  15. can — a tin
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. swing — music
  19. club — for dancing
  20. swing — in golf
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. craft — boats
  23. scale — in music
  24. swing — to play on

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