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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 120 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 sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. pop — soda
  4. prune — to trim
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. pop — music
  7. wind — moving air
  8. spell — a short time
  9. hand — in cards
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. hand — help
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. prune — to trim
  15. spell — letters
  16. saw — the tool
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. spell — magic
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. pop — to visit
  21. stand — to bear
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wind — moving air
  24. stand — on your feet

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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