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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  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. last — final
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. pass — a permit
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. wind — moving air
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. rash — a series
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. rash — hasty
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. last — to go on
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. last — finally
  23. chair — a leader
  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