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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. field — a subject
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. kid — child
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — farmland
  13. clip — a video
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. clip — to cut
  16. bulb — for light
  17. clip — for paper
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. craft — boats
  22. bulb — for light
  23. kid — to tease
  24. craft — a skill

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