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

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. last — finally
  3. mug — a cup
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. land — ground
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. saw — the tool
  9. wind — moving air
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mark — a grade
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. last — to go on
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. last — final
  18. land — to come down
  19. kick — in football
  20. wake — a trail
  21. mug — to rob
  22. mug — a face
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. land — a country

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