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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: suit · clip · wind · bowl · race · bore · file · wake

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bore — to tire
  4. file — a tool
  5. suit — in cards
  6. file — a document
  7. clip — a video
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. wake — a trail
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bore — to drill
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. suit — clothes
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. suit — to fit
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — humankind
  20. wind — moving air
  21. file — a line of people
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. race — the arms race

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