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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. ball — a dance
  4. last — finally
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. field — a subject
  8. key — the most important part
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. key — in music
  11. last — final
  12. swing — music
  13. ball — a great time
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. swing — in golf
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. key — for a lock
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. field — farmland
  20. swing — to play on
  21. field — for sport
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. dip — to sink
  24. racket — for tennis

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