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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. pop — to visit
  3. bound — tied together
  4. mark — a trace
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. last — to go on
  9. pop — soda
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bound — obliged
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. pop — music
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. last — final
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bound — certain
  24. mark — a grade

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