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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. last — to go on
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. root — of a word
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. firm — a company
  9. march — music
  10. squash — to crush
  11. suit — clothes
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. suit — to fit
  15. last — finally
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. firm — decided
  18. root — of a plant
  19. squash — the sport
  20. root — the cause
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. suit — in cards
  24. last — final

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