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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. wind — moving air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. last — finally
  6. last — final
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. foot — a measure
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. march — the month
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. last — to go on
  24. mine — for digging

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