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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. march — the month
  3. squash — to crush
  4. last — final
  5. can — a tin
  6. rash — a series
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. fork — in a road
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. can — a tin
  15. deal — to handle
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. game — wild animals
  18. rash — hasty
  19. game — a match
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. can — to be able to
  22. squash — the sport
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. last — finally

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