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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. spell — magic
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. band — a music group
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. chip — to eat
  10. branch — a division
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. spell — letters
  13. kick — in football
  14. chip — for betting
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. bear — the animal
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bear — the animal
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. spell — a short time

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