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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stand · mine · clip · drill · key · wind · pit · toast

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wind — moving air
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. clip — to cut
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pit — a hole
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — army training
  11. key — for a lock
  12. clip — a video
  13. pit — in a race
  14. key — the most important part
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. clip — for paper
  19. toast — bread
  20. drill — the tool
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. mine — for digging
  23. key — in music
  24. stand — for spectators

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