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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 120 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: saw · wind · bulb · net · rush · kid · key · swing

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. saw — the tool
  3. kid — to tease
  4. rush — hurry
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. net — in sport
  8. net — after costs
  9. bulb — for light
  10. key — in music
  11. kid — child
  12. bulb — for light
  13. swing — in golf
  14. key — for a lock
  15. swing — music
  16. wind — moving air
  17. key — the most important part
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. wind — moving air
  23. swing — to play on
  24. saw — the tool

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