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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. toast — bread
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. present — the time now
  7. wind — moving air
  8. key — in music
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a lid
  11. bore — to drill
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. row — a line
  15. present — there
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. key — for a lock
  18. cap — a hat
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — to paddle
  21. wind — moving air
  22. capital — a city
  23. key — the most important part
  24. bore — to tire

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