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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: scale · wind · game · shower · row · saw · fine · rash

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. row — to paddle
  3. fine — high quality
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rash — hasty
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. fine — all right
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. game — wild animals
  13. game — a match
  14. shower — rain
  15. saw — the tool
  16. scale — in music
  17. row — a line
  18. scale — size or range
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. rash — a series
  22. wind — moving air
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. shower — to wash

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