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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 124 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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. wound — an injury
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. sharp — clever
  6. bat — the animal
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. pound — a weight
  9. board — to get on
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. last — finally
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. roll — a list
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. mark — a grade
  20. last — to go on
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. mark — a trace
  23. board — a committee
  24. last — final

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