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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. net — in sport
  4. dip — to sink
  5. last — to go on
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. degree — from a university
  8. root — the cause
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. root — of a word
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. last — finally
  15. net — for catching
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. root — of a plant
  19. degree — temperature
  20. net — after costs
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. degree — an amount
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. wake — a trail

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