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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pound — a weight
  3. board — a committee
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. drill — the tool
  6. rush — hurry
  7. fine — all right
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — a practice
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — to tease
  14. face — to confront
  15. board — to get on
  16. fine — high quality
  17. face — to point toward
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. last — to go on
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. face — part of the head
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. last — finally
  24. pound — for dogs

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