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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. file — a line of people
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — letters
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. cue — for pool
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. file — a document
  11. cue — a signal
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. game — a match
  14. wind — moving air
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. wind — moving air
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. spell — a short time
  19. file — a tool
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. game — wild animals
  22. cue — a hint
  23. band — a ring
  24. fan — a supporter

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