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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. wake — a trail
  4. swing — to play on
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. spell — a short time
  8. wind — moving air
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rush — hurry
  11. band — a music group
  12. swing — in golf
  13. cell — in biology
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. stand — to bear
  18. spell — magic
  19. band — a ring
  20. swing — music
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. cell — a phone
  23. wind — moving air
  24. spell — letters

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