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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wave · fine · last · kid · pitcher · rock · bark · scale

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. last — to go on
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. kid — to tease
  6. last — final
  7. rock — a stone
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. last — finally
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fine — all right
  15. kid — child
  16. bark — to shout
  17. fine — high quality
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. scale — in music
  20. rock — music
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. scale — size or range
  24. wave — of the sea

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