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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wind · net · game · bear · fall · prune · board · racket

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. prune — to trim
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. fall — the season
  5. net — for catching
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. bear — the animal
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. net — after costs
  10. board — to get on
  11. net — in sport
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. game — wild animals
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. prune — to trim
  17. game — a match
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wind — moving air
  20. fall — to drop
  21. board — a committee
  22. bear — the animal
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. fall — to drop

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