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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. last — finally
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. current — electric
  7. pitch — completely
  8. current — of water
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — obliged
  14. last — to go on
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. rash — hasty
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. last — final
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. current — happening now
  23. bound — certain
  24. rash — a series

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