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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. sharp — clever
  4. land — a country
  5. pop — soda
  6. net — in sport
  7. march — music
  8. mug — to rob
  9. last — finally
  10. mug — a face
  11. track — to keep track
  12. march — the month
  13. mug — a cup
  14. track — a song
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — after costs
  17. pop — to visit
  18. land — to come down
  19. last — final
  20. track — a path
  21. march — the month
  22. land — ground
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. pop — music

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