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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. wind — moving air
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. row — to paddle
  7. wind — moving air
  8. row — a line
  9. board — a committee
  10. toast — bread
  11. tear — from crying
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. board — to get on
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. snap — to click
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tear — from crying
  22. kid — child
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. kid — to tease

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