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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. rash — a series
  3. squash — to crush
  4. degree — an amount
  5. rash — hasty
  6. rest — what's left
  7. last — final
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. can — a tin
  11. can — to be able to
  12. degree — from a university
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. squash — the sport
  16. degree — temperature
  17. wind — moving air
  18. can — a tin
  19. rest — a break
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. last — finally
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. rest — what's left

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