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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. last — final
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. cue — a signal
  5. court — of a king
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. court — of law
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. dip — to sink
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — a practice
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. saw — the tool
  14. court — for sport
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. capital — a city
  18. last — to go on
  19. capital — money
  20. last — finally
  21. cue — for pool
  22. drill — army training
  23. cue — a hint
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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