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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. row — to paddle
  6. tube — the underground
  7. row — a line
  8. rush — hurry
  9. last — final
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. content — the amount
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. content — happy
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. last — finally
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. bear — the animal
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. bat — the animal
  24. tube — a container

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