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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. plane — a tool
  4. wind — moving air
  5. hand — help
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. last — to go on
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bore — to tire
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. hand — in cards
  12. row — a line
  13. bore — to drill
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. last — final
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. row — to paddle
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. plane — in geometry

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