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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 120 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  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. wind — moving air
  2. present — a gift
  3. lie — to recline
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. last — final
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. key — in music
  8. cap — a lid
  9. present — there
  10. key — the most important part
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. present — the time now
  14. key — for a lock
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. cap — a hat
  17. pound — a weight
  18. last — finally
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. cap — of ice
  21. chair — a leader
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. last — to go on
  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