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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. ball — a great time
  5. key — for a lock
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. ball — a dance
  9. key — in music
  10. last — to go on
  11. mark — a grade
  12. last — finally
  13. season — in sport
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. mark — a trace
  17. key — the most important part
  18. last — final

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