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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 124 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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — soda
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. tube — a container
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — the sport
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. date — the fruit
  18. squash — to crush
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. pop — to visit
  22. tube — the underground
  23. pitch — completely
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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