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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. present — the time now
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rock — a stone
  7. rock — music
  8. field — a subject
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. lean — to bend
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — the animal
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. present — there
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. lean — thin
  18. field — farmland
  19. date — the fruit
  20. field — for sport
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. wind — moving air
  23. present — a gift
  24. safe — out of danger

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