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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rush — hurry
  3. file — a tool
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. file — a line of people
  6. roll — a cake
  7. field — for sport
  8. field — a subject
  9. saw — the tool
  10. prune — to trim
  11. suit — clothes
  12. wind — moving air
  13. roll — a list
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. field — farmland
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. suit — to fit
  20. suit — in cards
  21. prune — to trim
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. saw — the tool
  24. file — a document

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