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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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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. key — for a lock
  3. wind — moving air
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pit — a hole
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. suit — clothes
  11. wind — moving air
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pit — in a race
  14. squash — to crush
  15. suit — to fit
  16. key — in music
  17. key — the most important part
  18. squash — the sport
  19. suit — in cards
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. row — a line
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. row — to paddle
  24. bat — in an idiom

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