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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. last — to go on
  3. file — a tool
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. fine — all right
  6. file — a document
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. staff — employees
  9. fork — in a road
  10. file — a line of people
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. shower — to wash
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. shower — rain
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. staff — a stick
  18. last — finally
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. last — final
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. staff — employees
  24. fine — high quality

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