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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. row — a line
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. swing — music
  7. last — final
  8. stock — goods
  9. swing — in golf
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — hasty
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. bat — the animal
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. rash — a series
  20. swing — to play on
  21. stock — shares
  22. last — to go on
  23. row — to paddle
  24. stock — a soup base

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