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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a great time
  6. pit — in a race
  7. degree — from a university
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. last — final
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. content — happy
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. content — the amount
  14. pit — a hole
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — an amount
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. last — finally
  20. file — a document
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a tool

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