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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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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 — to go on
  3. face — to point toward
  4. track — a song
  5. mug — to rob
  6. last — final
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wind — moving air
  9. fall — to drop
  10. track — a path
  11. mug — a cup
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — obliged
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. fall — the season
  16. face — part of the head
  17. last — finally
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. track — to keep track
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. face — to confront
  22. mug — a face
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bound — certain

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