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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 116 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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — a break
  3. last — final
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rest — what's left
  6. fine — all right
  7. race — a contest
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. present — a gift
  11. race — the arms race
  12. fine — high quality
  13. present — the time now
  14. wound — an injury
  15. present — there
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. last — finally
  18. last — to go on
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. race — humankind
  21. mug — to rob
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. mug — a cup
  24. mug — a face

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