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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. land — ground
  3. land — to come down
  4. row — to paddle
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — in music
  7. can — to be able to
  8. last — final
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. tear — to rip
  13. can — a tin
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. key — the most important part
  16. pitch — completely
  17. last — to go on
  18. land — a country
  19. tear — from crying
  20. last — finally
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. can — a tin
  23. tear — from crying
  24. wind — moving air

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