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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  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. stock — a soup base
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bound — tied together
  4. sharp — clever
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. firm — decided
  9. drill — a practice
  10. stock — goods
  11. bound — certain
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. firm — steady
  14. last — to go on
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. foot — a measure
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — army training
  20. stock — shares
  21. bound — obliged
  22. last — final
  23. firm — a company
  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