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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bat — the animal
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. game — a match
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. firm — decided
  10. net — for catching
  11. firm — steady
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. net — in sport
  14. firm — a company
  15. game — wild animals
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. board — a committee
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. net — after costs
  23. board — to get on
  24. patient — a sick person

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