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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. spell — letters
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — after costs
  6. squash — to crush
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. cue — a signal
  10. game — wild animals
  11. prune — to trim
  12. net — in sport
  13. cue — for pool
  14. spell — magic
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. spell — a short time
  17. prune — to trim
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. wind — moving air
  22. squash — the sport
  23. game — a match
  24. cue — a hint

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