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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. mate — a friend
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. mate — to breed
  6. track — a song
  7. game — wild animals
  8. mate — a partner
  9. net — for catching
  10. track — to keep track
  11. lean — thin
  12. chest — a box
  13. track — a path
  14. net — in sport
  15. game — a match
  16. chest — of your body
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. lean — to bend
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. net — after costs
  22. wind — moving air
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wind — moving air

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