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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. file — a tool
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. rush — hurry
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. saw — the tool
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. squash — the sport
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. dip — to sink
  15. saw — the tool
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. game — a match
  19. wind — moving air
  20. file — a line of people
  21. wind — moving air
  22. squash — to crush
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. file — a document

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