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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: board · arm · mouse · wind · wake · lie · field · band

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. wake — a trail
  6. field — a subject
  7. wind — moving air
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. board — a committee
  11. band — a music group
  12. field — for sport
  13. field — farmland
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. board — to get on
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — to recline

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