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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. last — finally
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. ball — a great time
  5. rest — what's left
  6. fine — high quality
  7. dip — to sink
  8. wind — moving air
  9. rest — what's left
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. last — final
  13. ball — a dance
  14. last — to go on
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fine — all right
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. saw — the tool
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. saw — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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