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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. track — a song
  3. rash — hasty
  4. bark — to shout
  5. squash — to crush
  6. wind — moving air
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. track — to keep track
  9. kick — in football
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. season — in sport
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. rash — a series
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. season — of the year
  20. squash — the sport
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. track — a path

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