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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. degree — from a university
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wind — moving air
  7. club — for dancing
  8. club — for golf
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. club — a group
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bulb — for light
  15. craft — boats
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. craft — a skill
  18. degree — temperature
  19. race — the arms race
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. race — humankind
  23. race — a contest
  24. degree — an amount

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