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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. last — final
  5. rest — a break
  6. last — finally
  7. craft — a skill
  8. last — to go on
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. shower — rain
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. shower — to wash
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. degree — from a university
  16. rest — what's left
  17. craft — boats
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. foot — a measure
  20. rest — what's left
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — temperature
  24. foot — part of the body

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