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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. chest — of your body
  3. ground — crushed
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. last — finally
  8. rush — hurry
  9. last — final
  10. ground — the earth
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. file — a tool
  13. wind — moving air
  14. pass — a permit
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. last — to go on
  17. chest — of your body
  18. ground — a position
  19. chest — a box
  20. file — a line of people
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. file — a document
  24. temple — a place of worship

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