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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. foot — a measure
  5. stem — to come from
  6. court — of a king
  7. rest — what's left
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. last — to go on
  10. court — of law
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. spell — magic
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. court — for sport
  16. last — final
  17. spell — a short time
  18. spell — letters
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. last — finally
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. rest — a break

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