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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cap — a hat
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. bass — low music
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bass — the fish
  10. track — to keep track
  11. bore — to drill
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. wind — moving air
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. shower — to wash
  17. cap — of ice
  18. track — a song
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — rain
  21. track — a path
  22. cap — a lid
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. bore — to tire

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