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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. degree — from a university
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. last — to go on
  6. kick — in football
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. snap — to click
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. fork — in a road
  13. degree — temperature
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. degree — an amount
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. last — final
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. patient — a sick person

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