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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. squash — to crush
  3. rush — hurry
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pit — in a race
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pit — a hole
  9. wind — moving air
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — the tool
  12. cap — a hat
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. drill — a practice
  15. fall — to drop
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. cap — of ice
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. cap — a lid
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. fall — the season

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