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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. firm — steady
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. last — final
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — letters
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. dip — to sink
  12. spell — a short time
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. last — finally
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. firm — decided
  18. last — to go on
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. court — of a king
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of law
  24. firm — a company

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