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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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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: rock · wind · foot · bat · face · racket · pass · spring

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. face — to point toward
  7. face — part of the head
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. pass — a permit
  10. face — to confront
  11. spring — of water
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. spring — a coil
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. foot — a measure
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. rock — music
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. spring — the season

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