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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mug — a face
  4. wind — moving air
  5. kid — child
  6. plane — a tool
  7. row — a line
  8. mug — to rob
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. wind — moving air
  13. row — to paddle
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. roll — a cake
  16. kid — to tease
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pitch — completely
  19. mug — a cup
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. roll — a list
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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