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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: racket · pound · degree · wind · lie · tear · charge · mark

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — moving air
  8. degree — from a university
  9. charge — electricity
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. charge — a price
  12. tear — from crying
  13. mark — a trace
  14. lie — to recline
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. tear — from crying
  18. mark — a grade
  19. pound — a weight
  20. degree — temperature
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. degree — an amount
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. charge — in control

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