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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 116 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: lean · dip · ground · wave · wind · squash · net · cell

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. net — in sport
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. cell — a phone
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. lean — to bend
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. squash — to crush
  11. squash — the sport
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cell — in biology
  14. ground — a position
  15. net — for catching
  16. lean — thin
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. dip — to sink
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. net — after costs
  24. ground — the earth

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