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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. file — a tool
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. capital — money
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. file — a document
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. perch — the fish
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. last — final
  15. capital — a city
  16. squash — to crush
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. file — a line of people
  19. pass — a permit
  20. squash — the sport
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. last — finally
  23. last — to go on
  24. fan — to cool the air

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