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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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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: leaves · straw · wind · bay · toast · field · hand · last

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. hand — in cards
  7. last — to go on
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. field — a subject
  10. last — final
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. toast — bread
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. field — for sport
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. field — farmland
  20. wind — moving air
  21. last — finally
  22. hand — help
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. wind — to turn a key

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