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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 116 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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. last — finally
  3. swing — to play on
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. kick — in football
  8. pop — to visit
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. swing — music
  11. last — to go on
  12. swing — in golf
  13. race — humankind
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. race — a contest
  16. pop — music
  17. race — the arms race
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. stem — to come from
  20. pop — soda
  21. last — final
  22. wind — moving air
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stem — a stem cell

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