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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. squash — to crush
  3. last — to go on
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. current — happening now
  8. squash — the sport
  9. current — of water
  10. chair — a leader
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. wound — an injury
  19. last — final
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. last — finally
  23. vault — a safe
  24. current — electric

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