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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. toast — bread
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bat — the animal
  7. last — to go on
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. last — finally
  12. capital — money
  13. ball — a great time
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. capital — a city
  21. last — final
  22. wind — moving air
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. arm — part of the body

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