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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. chest — of your body
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. last — final
  9. court — of law
  10. court — of a king
  11. chest — of your body
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. last — to go on
  14. rest — a break
  15. dip — to sink
  16. field — a subject
  17. rest — what's left
  18. field — for sport
  19. chest — a box
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. court — for sport
  22. rest — what's left
  23. last — finally
  24. field — farmland

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