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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. pit — a hole
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. game — a match
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. degree — temperature
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — to wash
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. degree — from a university
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. last — finally
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. pit — in a race
  23. last — final
  24. shower — rain

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