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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 116 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mate — a partner
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. mate — to breed
  10. saw — the tool
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. squash — to crush
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. saw — the tool
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. fork — in a road
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. wake — a trail
  23. squash — the sport
  24. mate — a friend

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