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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. wind — moving air
  3. hand — help
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mine — for digging
  6. drill — army training
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. wax — to grow
  11. drill — the tool
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. board — a committee
  14. wind — moving air
  15. drill — a practice
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. board — to get on
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. hand — in cards
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. mine — an explosive

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