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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. spell — magic
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. spell — a short time
  9. clip — to cut
  10. ground — crushed
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. ground — the earth
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. spell — letters
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — to eat
  19. wind — moving air
  20. ground — a position
  21. plane — a tool
  22. clip — for paper
  23. wake — a trail
  24. clip — a video

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