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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. rock — music
  7. mate — a friend
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. wind — moving air
  10. mate — to breed
  11. rock — a stone
  12. mine — for digging
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. wind — moving air
  16. rest — a break
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. rest — what's left
  19. row — a line
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. mate — a partner
  22. row — to paddle
  23. rock — to move gently
  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