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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 120 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. land — ground
  3. spell — letters
  4. plane — a tool
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. spell — a short time
  7. file — a line of people
  8. swing — to play on
  9. swing — in golf
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. file — a document
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. land — to come down
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. swing — music
  16. saw — the tool
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. file — a tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. land — a country
  22. spell — magic
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pitcher — a jug

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