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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — finally
  3. ground — the earth
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. game — a match
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ground — a position
  10. dip — to sink
  11. foot — a measure
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. fork — in a road
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. game — wild animals
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. tear — from crying
  18. roll — a list
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. last — final
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. roll — a cake

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