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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — final
  3. cell — a phone
  4. last — to go on
  5. bore — to tire
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. firm — a company
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. firm — decided
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. track — a path
  13. track — to keep track
  14. wound — an injury
  15. chair — a leader
  16. track — a song
  17. bore — to drill
  18. wound — an injury
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. firm — steady
  23. cell — in biology
  24. bore — gave birth

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