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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. race — a contest
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. toast — bread
  6. last — finally
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of law
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. race — humankind
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. last — final
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. race — the arms race
  18. court — of a king
  19. rush — hurry
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. last — to go on
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. rush — a thrill

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