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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. firm — decided
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. pop — soda
  6. press — a publisher
  7. land — ground
  8. firm — steady
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. pop — music
  11. sharp — clever
  12. press — newspapers
  13. land — to come down
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pop — to visit
  16. row — a line
  17. land — a country
  18. row — to paddle
  19. ball — a dance
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. press — to push
  23. firm — a company
  24. ball — a great time

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