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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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — to go on
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. race — humankind
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. ground — a position
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bark — to shout
  11. ground — crushed
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. race — a contest
  14. rest — a break
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. last — final
  17. rest — what's left
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bass — low music
  23. bass — the fish
  24. vault — a safe

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