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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 sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  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. wind — to turn a key
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. perch — the fish
  10. squash — to crush
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. wound — an injury
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. squash — the sport
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. game — wild animals
  22. wind — moving air
  23. game — a match
  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