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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. prune — to trim
  4. row — to paddle
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — completely
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. prune — to trim
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. snap — to click
  15. rock — music
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. row — a line
  24. pitcher — a jug

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