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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. sharp — clever
  4. wind — moving air
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — rain
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — hasty
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. rash — a series
  14. spring — a coil
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. current — of water
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. wind — moving air
  20. current — happening now
  21. spring — the season
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. current — electric
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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