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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. court — for sport
  3. file — a document
  4. snap — to click
  5. rash — a series
  6. last — finally
  7. file — a tool
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. saw — the tool
  11. pit — a hole
  12. last — final
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. pit — in a race
  16. saw — the tool
  17. court — of law
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. court — of a king
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. file — a line of people
  24. rash — hasty

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