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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: key · toast · row · land · rush · band · tear · fine

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. fine — all right
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rush — hurry
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. land — ground
  8. fine — high quality
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. key — in music
  11. land — a country
  12. band — a ring
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. key — the most important part
  15. row — a line
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. land — to come down
  18. tear — from crying
  19. row — to paddle
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. key — for a lock
  23. tear — to rip
  24. fine — a penalty

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