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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 116 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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rest — what's left
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. rest — a break
  5. prune — to trim
  6. key — in music
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. wind — moving air
  9. last — final
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. key — the most important part
  12. last — finally
  13. rest — what's left
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. key — for a lock
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wind — moving air
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. wake — a trail
  20. prune — to trim
  21. last — to go on
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. pass — a permit

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