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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  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 — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. clip — for paper
  4. lean — thin
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. clip — a video
  7. spell — letters
  8. clip — to cut
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. lean — to bend
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. pound — a weight
  14. spell — magic
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. pass — a permit
  19. chair — a leader
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. spell — a short time
  23. pound — for dogs
  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