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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. hand — in cards
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. ground — a position
  6. kid — child
  7. net — for catching
  8. rush — hurry
  9. net — in sport
  10. kid — to tease
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. vault — a safe
  15. hand — help
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. net — after costs
  18. ground — the earth
  19. last — to go on
  20. mark — a trace
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. ground — crushed
  23. mark — a grade
  24. last — finally

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