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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. wake — a trail
  9. clip — a video
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. squash — the sport
  12. mark — a trace
  13. roll — a cake
  14. wind — moving air
  15. mark — a grade
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. clip — for paper
  18. wind — moving air
  19. roll — a list
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. clip — to cut
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. bowl — to roll

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