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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fall — to drop
  7. chest — of your body
  8. lean — thin
  9. lean — to bend
  10. fall — the season
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. chest — a box
  13. last — final
  14. key — for a lock
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. band — a music group
  17. wind — moving air
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. last — to go on
  20. band — a ring
  21. last — finally
  22. key — the most important part
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fall — to drop

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