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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: row · toast · last · wind · lean · cap · ball · pitch

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cap — a hat
  3. lean — thin
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. ball — a great time
  10. row — to paddle
  11. last — final
  12. row — a line
  13. last — to go on
  14. ball — a dance
  15. lean — to bend
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. toast — bread
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. cap — of ice
  21. cap — a lid
  22. last — finally
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pitch — completely

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