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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. last — finally
  4. fine — high quality
  5. last — to go on
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. current — happening now
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. mark — a grade
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. fine — all right
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. current — electric
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. last — final
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. mark — a trace
  22. current — of water
  23. kid — child
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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