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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. ball — a great time
  6. ball — a dance
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. fall — to drop
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. rush — hurry
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pop — soda
  16. fall — the season
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. wind — moving air
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. snap — to click
  22. pop — music
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. pop — to visit

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