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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. spell — letters
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. net — for catching
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. spell — a short time
  9. last — finally
  10. pitch — completely
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. net — after costs
  13. last — final
  14. firm — decided
  15. firm — a company
  16. row — a line
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. last — to go on
  19. firm — steady
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. spell — magic
  22. net — in sport
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. row — to paddle

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