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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. pound — a weight
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. bulb — for light
  12. craft — boats
  13. stand — to bear
  14. bulb — for light
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. craft — a skill
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. cold — not warm
  22. wind — moving air
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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