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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 120 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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. rash — a series
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. track — a song
  6. firm — a company
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a path
  9. last — finally
  10. last — to go on
  11. firm — steady
  12. capital — a city
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. row — to paddle
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. firm — decided
  17. rash — hasty
  18. last — final
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. capital — money
  24. chair — a leader

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