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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. charge — a price
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. charge — electricity
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. scale — in music
  10. wake — a trail
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. degree — an amount
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. scale — size or range
  16. last — to go on
  17. last — final
  18. degree — from a university
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. charge — in control
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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