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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. mark — a grade
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. fine — all right
  6. fall — the season
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. wind — moving air
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. pound — a weight
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. mark — a trace
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. wind — moving air
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. pitch — completely
  23. kick — in football
  24. pound — for dogs

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