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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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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: fall · hand · swing · mouse · rest · wind · rock · track

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. rock — music
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. swing — to play on
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. track — a path
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. fall — the season
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. rest — a break
  13. track — a song
  14. rest — what's left
  15. swing — in golf
  16. track — to keep track
  17. swing — music
  18. hand — help
  19. wind — moving air
  20. fall — to drop
  21. hand — in cards
  22. fall — to drop
  23. rock — a stone
  24. rest — what's left

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