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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. last — finally
  3. last — to go on
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. cold — an illness
  13. shower — rain
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stock — goods
  16. chair — a leader
  17. cold — not warm
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. stock — shares
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. last — final
  24. shower — to wash

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