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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 120 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. saw — the tool
  3. track — a path
  4. last — finally
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. court — of law
  8. track — a song
  9. track — to keep track
  10. firm — steady
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. last — to go on
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. mine — for digging
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. firm — a company
  20. court — of a king
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. court — for sport
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. last — final

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