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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 120 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: mine · wave · last · stick · pit · stand · wound · saw

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. last — finally
  4. pit — a hole
  5. last — final
  6. last — to go on
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. saw — the tool
  9. pit — in a race
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. wound — an injury
  14. stand — to bear
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mine — for digging
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. stand — on your feet

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