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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — to go on
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. last — final
  5. shower — to wash
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fine — all right
  9. degree — temperature
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. shower — rain
  13. current — happening now
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. current — electric
  17. degree — from a university
  18. current — of water
  19. degree — an amount
  20. squash — to crush
  21. fine — high quality
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. squash — the sport

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