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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. lean — to bend
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. toast — bread
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. club — for golf
  8. fine — high quality
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. lean — thin
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. fine — all right
  14. wind — moving air
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. saw — the tool
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. club — for dancing
  21. saw — the tool
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. patient — a sick person

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