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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 ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wound — an injury
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bulb — for light
  9. wound — an injury
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. rash — a series
  13. stem — to come from
  14. bulb — for light
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. roll — a cake
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. file — a tool
  20. rash — hasty
  21. foot — a measure
  22. wind — moving air
  23. file — a document
  24. roll — a list

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