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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · bat · chest · bulb · track · wake · saw · roll

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. saw — the tool
  3. chest — of your body
  4. roll — a list
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. saw — the tool
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. bulb — for light
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. chest — a box
  13. track — a song
  14. wind — moving air
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. roll — a cake
  20. wind — moving air
  21. track — a path
  22. bulb — for light
  23. wake — a trail
  24. track — to keep track

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