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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pass — a permit
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — a country
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. wind — moving air
  7. game — a match
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. suit — in cards
  10. land — ground
  11. wind — moving air
  12. squash — to crush
  13. squash — the sport
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. chest — of your body
  16. suit — clothes
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. chest — a box
  19. last — to go on
  20. chest — of your body
  21. suit — to fit
  22. last — finally
  23. last — final
  24. game — wild animals

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