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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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Word bank
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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. saw — the tool
  5. wound — an injury
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. saw — the tool
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. craft — a skill
  12. pit — in a race
  13. prune — to trim
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. pit — a hole
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cell — in biology
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. cell — a phone
  23. craft — boats
  24. field — a subject

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