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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. mug — a face
  6. can — a tin
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. wound — an injury
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. file — a document
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wound — an injury
  13. present — the time now
  14. can — to be able to
  15. mug — a cup
  16. file — a tool
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. present — there
  19. present — a gift
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — money
  22. wind — moving air
  23. file — a line of people
  24. mug — to rob

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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