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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. last — to go on
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — the underground
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. tube — a container
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. last — final
  10. bat — the animal
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. row — to paddle
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. scale — in music
  15. row — a line
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — the season
  22. scale — size or range
  23. spring — of water
  24. ruler — for measuring

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