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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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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: coach · pitcher · current · sharp · land · row · object · last

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. row — a line
  3. object — an aim
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. land — a country
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — to paddle
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. current — of water
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. object — to protest
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. last — final
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. current — happening now
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. current — electric
  20. last — finally
  21. land — ground
  22. last — to go on
  23. sharp — clever
  24. land — to come down

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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