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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. season — of the year
  3. pass — a permit
  4. craft — boats
  5. season — in sport
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. last — final
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. craft — a skill
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. mark — a grade
  14. last — finally
  15. last — to go on
  16. scale — size or range
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. scale — in music
  24. pitcher — a jug

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