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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. last — to go on
  4. face — part of the head
  5. swing — music
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. ball — a great time
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. shower — to wash
  10. last — final
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. shower — rain
  15. swing — in golf
  16. swing — to play on
  17. saw — the tool
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. ball — a dance
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. face — to confront
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. face — to point toward

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