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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. tear — from crying
  9. mate — to breed
  10. bank — for money
  11. tear — to rip
  12. bank — for money
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mark — a trace
  15. last — final
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. last — finally
  18. bank — of a river

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