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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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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. tear — to rip
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. craft — boats
  6. mine — for digging
  7. last — final
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. tear — from crying
  10. saw — the tool
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. craft — a skill
  15. snap — to click
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. tear — from crying
  21. saw — the tool
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. last — finally

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