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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: wind · kid · lie · stick · pitch · mouse · rock · row

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. kid — to tease
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. lie — to recline
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. row — to paddle
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. kid — child
  14. pitch — completely
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. rock — a stone
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. row — a line
  19. rock — music
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. wind — moving air
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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