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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. cue — for pool
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. cue — a signal
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. wind — moving air
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — to cut
  12. wind — moving air
  13. file — a line of people
  14. clip — for paper
  15. degree — temperature
  16. suit — to fit
  17. cue — a hint
  18. fall — to drop
  19. file — a tool
  20. file — a document
  21. suit — clothes
  22. suit — in cards
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — to be able to

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