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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. last — to go on
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. wound — an injury
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. pass — a permit
  9. wind — moving air
  10. stem — to come from
  11. rush — hurry
  12. wound — an injury
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. last — finally
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. foot — a measure
  22. last — final
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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