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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. last — final
  7. last — finally
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. saw — the tool
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. mark — a trace
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. last — to go on
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mark — a grade
  19. wind — moving air
  20. toast — bread
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — thin
  23. row — to paddle
  24. row — a line

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