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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: chest · wind · lean · pitcher · fall · dip · bowl · bound

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bound — tied together
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bound — certain
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wind — moving air
  12. dip — to sink
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. chest — a box
  16. bound — obliged
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. fall — the season
  20. lean — thin
  21. fall — to drop
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. lean — to bend
  24. pitcher — a jug

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