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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. prune — to trim
  3. chip — to eat
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. band — a music group
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. mine — for digging
  8. chip — for betting
  9. prune — to trim
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. wind — moving air
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. band — a ring
  17. cell — a phone
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. wind — moving air
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. pass — a permit

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