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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  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. last — to go on
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. wake — a trail
  5. last — finally
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. scale — in music
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. file — a document
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. file — a line of people
  21. fork — in a road
  22. file — a tool
  23. scale — size or range
  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