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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a match
  9. fine — all right
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. kid — to tease
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. kid — child
  17. last — finally
  18. game — a kind of play

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