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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. ball — a great time
  3. wind — moving air
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. ball — a dance
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. shower — to wash
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. chip — to eat
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. scale — size or range
  15. shower — rain
  16. lie — to recline
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. scale — in music
  24. chip — for betting

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