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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. last — to go on
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. last — finally
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rest — a break
  9. spring — the season
  10. stand — to bear
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. wind — moving air
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. rest — what's left
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. mine — for digging
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. last — final

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