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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. hand — in cards
  4. court — of law
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. last — final
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. chest — of your body
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — a tool
  14. court — for sport
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. last — finally
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. pound — a weight
  22. last — to go on
  23. court — of a king
  24. chest — a box

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