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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: patient · wind · perch · row · kid · firm · key · toast

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wind — moving air
  4. row — a line
  5. key — the most important part
  6. firm — decided
  7. kid — to tease
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. toast — bread
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. key — for a lock
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. key — in music
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. kid — child
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. wind — moving air
  21. row — to paddle
  22. firm — steady
  23. firm — a company
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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