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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — to go on
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. last — final
  5. degree — temperature
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. scale — in music
  8. rush — hurry
  9. mug — a cup
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bat — the animal
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. scale — size or range
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. degree — an amount
  20. degree — from a university
  21. mug — a face
  22. mug — to rob
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. scale — for weighing

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