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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 120 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — a trail
  3. pound — a weight
  4. sharp — clever
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. pit — a hole
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. last — final
  10. last — finally
  11. pit — in a race
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. face — part of the head
  15. face — to confront
  16. last — to go on
  17. field — for sport
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. field — a subject
  21. face — to point toward
  22. field — farmland
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. sharp — exactly

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