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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. sharp — clever
  9. march — the month
  10. march — the month
  11. firm — decided
  12. wind — moving air
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. firm — steady
  17. capital — a city
  18. bear — the animal
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. capital — money
  21. firm — a company
  22. march — music
  23. bear — the animal
  24. sharp — exactly

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