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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. race — a contest
  3. wind — moving air
  4. degree — an amount
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wind — moving air
  8. object — an aim
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. object — a thing
  11. fall — to drop
  12. club — a group
  13. saw — the tool
  14. wake — a trail
  15. saw — the tool
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. club — for dancing
  18. degree — from a university
  19. club — for golf
  20. race — the arms race
  21. degree — temperature
  22. race — humankind
  23. fall — the season
  24. object — to protest

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