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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. object — a thing
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. rock — a stone
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. rock — music
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. fine — all right
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — high quality
  14. object — to protest
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — a city
  17. bark — to shout
  18. object — an aim
  19. mark — a trace
  20. capital — money
  21. mark — a grade
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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