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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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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 · bear · wake · craft · race · mine · suit · chest

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. suit — to fit
  3. craft — a skill
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. chest — of your body
  8. race — a contest
  9. chest — a box
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. race — humankind
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. mine — for digging
  14. race — the arms race
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bear — the animal
  17. suit — clothes
  18. suit — in cards
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. wake — a trail
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. craft — boats
  24. bear — the animal

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