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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. game — a match
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. bat — the animal
  6. mark — a grade
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. lean — to bend
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bear — the animal
  11. game — wild animals
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. roll — a list
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. lean — thin
  16. band — a music group
  17. roll — a cake
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. band — a ring
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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