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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. current — electric
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. current — of water
  7. bat — the animal
  8. file — a line of people
  9. club — a group
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. perch — the fish
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. file — a tool
  16. current — happening now
  17. club — for dancing
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. wind — moving air
  20. file — a document
  21. club — for golf
  22. sharp — clever
  23. wind — moving air
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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