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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. row — to paddle
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. row — a line
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. wind — moving air
  8. squash — to crush
  9. scale — in music
  10. squash — the sport
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. face — to confront
  13. clip — for paper
  14. rush — hurry
  15. scale — size or range
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. clip — to cut
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wind — moving air
  22. face — to point toward
  23. clip — a video
  24. hide — to keep secret

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