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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. snap — to click
  3. track — a path
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. firm — steady
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. last — final
  8. track — a song
  9. last — finally
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — temperature
  13. track — to keep track
  14. toast — bread
  15. firm — a company
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. face — to confront
  18. face — part of the head
  19. degree — from a university
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. last — to go on
  22. face — to point toward
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. toast — the most admired

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