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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. cap — of ice
  3. wound — an injury
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. wound — an injury
  6. face — part of the head
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cap — a lid
  11. row — a line
  12. wind — moving air
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. wind — moving air
  16. plane — a tool
  17. row — to paddle
  18. cap — a hat
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. face — to confront
  21. capital — money
  22. capital — a city
  23. face — to point toward
  24. cabinet — ministers

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