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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. band — a ring
  4. bat — the animal
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. board — a committee
  8. board — to get on
  9. swing — music
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. swing — in golf
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. bound — certain
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bound — tied together
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. band — a music group
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. swing — to play on
  21. plane — a tool
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. bound — obliged

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