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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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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: wave · band · craft · rock · wound · wind · arm · march

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. craft — boats
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. march — music
  5. wound — an injury
  6. craft — a skill
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. band — a music group
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. band — a ring
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. rock — a stone
  23. rock — music
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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