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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. stand — to bear
  3. foot — a measure
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. hand — help
  6. scale — in music
  7. mug — a face
  8. mug — a cup
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. scale — size or range
  11. last — final
  12. mug — to rob
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. board — to get on
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. board — a committee
  22. hand — in cards
  23. last — finally
  24. board — a flat piece

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