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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. wind — moving air
  3. fine — all right
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rest — what's left
  6. pitch — completely
  7. cap — a lid
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. club — for golf
  11. cap — a hat
  12. rest — what's left
  13. net — after costs
  14. cell — a phone
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. cell — in biology
  17. net — for catching
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. club — for dancing
  20. cap — of ice
  21. net — in sport
  22. fine — high quality
  23. club — a group
  24. cell — in a prison

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