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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. toast — bread
  3. march — the month
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. pound — a weight
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. march — the month
  9. stand — to bear
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. wind — moving air
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. march — music
  18. foot — a measure
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. mine — for digging

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