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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. staff — employees
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. staff — employees
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. last — to go on
  12. staff — a stick
  13. pound — a weight
  14. drill — the tool
  15. file — a tool
  16. last — final
  17. file — a line of people
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. last — finally
  20. drill — army training
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. file — a document
  23. fork — in a road
  24. drill — a practice

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