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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. last — final
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. capital — money
  7. last — to go on
  8. stock — goods
  9. kid — child
  10. stock — shares
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. kid — to tease
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. capital — a city
  17. last — finally
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. cell — in biology
  20. pass — a permit
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. pitcher — a jug

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