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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. spell — a short time
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bore — to tire
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. spell — letters
  10. club — for dancing
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. bore — to drill
  13. can — to be able to
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. spell — magic
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. club — for golf
  19. can — a tin
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. can — a tin
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — for digging
  24. club — a group

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