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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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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: pitcher · board · squash · march · object · snap · last · cell

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. march — the month
  5. squash — to crush
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. object — a thing
  8. squash — the sport
  9. board — a committee
  10. snap — to click
  11. object — an aim
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. object — to protest
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. last — final
  16. last — to go on
  17. march — the month
  18. march — music
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. board — to get on
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. cell — in biology
  23. last — finally
  24. board — a flat piece

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