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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. drill — the tool
  5. mark — a grade
  6. drill — army training
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fine — all right
  13. mark — a trace
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. degree — from a university
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. last — finally
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. fine — high quality
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. last — final
  23. degree — an amount
  24. drill — a practice

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