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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 120 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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. wind — moving air
  3. season — of the year
  4. charge — electricity
  5. lean — to bend
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. wind — moving air
  8. charge — a price
  9. season — in sport
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. charge — in control
  14. net — after costs
  15. lean — thin
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. game — a match
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. game — wild animals
  24. net — in sport

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