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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 116 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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. can — a tin
  3. last — to go on
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. firm — steady
  8. can — to be able to
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. cold — an illness
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — a match
  14. firm — decided
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. last — finally
  17. can — a tin
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. firm — a company
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. game — wild animals
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. cold — not warm

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