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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. cap — of ice
  4. last — finally
  5. tear — from crying
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. cap — a hat
  8. last — to go on
  9. bound — tied together
  10. suit — clothes
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. cap — a lid
  15. bound — certain
  16. sharp — clever
  17. tear — from crying
  18. last — final
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. tear — to rip
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. suit — to fit
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. suit — in cards

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