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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. swing — music
  5. mine — for digging
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — to play on
  10. pass — a permit
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. bat — the animal
  14. spring — the season
  15. rock — a stone
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. deal — to handle
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. rock — music
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — of water
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. wind — moving air

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