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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. mine — for digging
  3. spring — the season
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. bass — low music
  6. march — the month
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. march — music
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. spring — of water
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. march — the month
  14. pit — a hole
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bass — the fish
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. pit — in a race

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