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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. last — final
  6. wind — moving air
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. swing — music
  10. stock — shares
  11. last — to go on
  12. swing — to play on
  13. cold — an illness
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. stock — goods
  18. last — finally
  19. cold — not warm
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. mouse — for a computer

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