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

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. last — to go on
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. ground — the earth
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. last — finally
  7. ground — a position
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. last — final
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. ground — crushed
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. pitcher — in baseball

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