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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 124 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. wind — moving air
  3. mine — for digging
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. last — final
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. current — of water
  10. field — a subject
  11. current — happening now
  12. field — farmland
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. rock — a stone
  15. current — electric
  16. last — to go on
  17. mate — a friend
  18. wind — moving air
  19. field — for sport
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. mate — to breed
  22. rock — music
  23. date — the fruit
  24. mate — a partner

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