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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. scale — in music
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. rest — a break
  5. ball — a dance
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. land — a country
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. ball — a great time
  11. land — ground
  12. land — to come down
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. rest — what's left
  16. squash — to crush
  17. last — final
  18. scale — size or range
  19. last — finally
  20. last — to go on
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. rest — what's left
  23. squash — the sport
  24. mouse — for a computer

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