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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. toast — bread
  6. wind — moving air
  7. chest — of your body
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. mine — for digging
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. chest — of your body
  15. game — wild animals
  16. deal — to handle
  17. chest — a box
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. game — a match
  24. nail — for a hammer

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