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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 116 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. key — in music
  3. shower — rain
  4. bound — obliged
  5. swing — in golf
  6. march — the month
  7. shower — to wash
  8. wind — moving air
  9. spell — a short time
  10. swing — music
  11. swing — to play on
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. spell — letters
  14. spell — magic
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. key — for a lock
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. key — the most important part
  19. march — the month
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. march — music
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bound — certain

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