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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. last — to go on
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. lean — thin
  6. prune — to trim
  7. march — the month
  8. lean — to bend
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. last — final
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. pit — a hole
  15. prune — to trim
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. march — music
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. march — the month
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. last — finally
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pit — in a race
  24. wind — moving air

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