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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. tube — a container
  3. mine — for digging
  4. date — the fruit
  5. drill — the tool
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. drill — army training
  8. stand — to bear
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. current — electric
  13. current — of water
  14. wind — moving air
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. tube — the underground
  19. current — happening now
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. drill — a practice
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. tube — in a tire

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