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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. season — in sport
  3. drill — a practice
  4. present — a gift
  5. drill — the tool
  6. present — there
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. squash — the sport
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. field — for sport
  11. spell — letters
  12. season — of the year
  13. dip — to sink
  14. last — final
  15. spell — a short time
  16. field — a subject
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. drill — army training
  19. spell — magic
  20. present — the time now
  21. field — farmland
  22. last — finally
  23. squash — to crush
  24. dip — to dunk

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