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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. face — to confront
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. face — part of the head
  5. kick — in football
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pound — a weight
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — army training
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. dip — to sink
  17. drill — the tool
  18. face — to point toward
  19. row — to paddle
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. wind — moving air
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. row — a line

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