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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 120 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. pop — music
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. band — a music group
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. wind — moving air
  7. saw — the tool
  8. spring — of water
  9. spring — a coil
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pop — soda
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. pop — to visit
  16. saw — the tool
  17. spring — the season
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. perch — the fish
  21. band — a ring
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. rush — hurry

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