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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. chair — a leader
  4. wake — a trail
  5. club — for dancing
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. plane — a tool
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. last — finally
  13. fork — in a road
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. capital — a city
  17. last — final
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. club — a group
  21. capital — money
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. club — for golf

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