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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mate — a friend
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. land — a country
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lean — thin
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. pit — a hole
  9. last — finally
  10. last — to go on
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — happy
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. mate — to breed
  17. foot — a measure
  18. last — final
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. pit — in a race
  21. land — to come down
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. land — ground
  24. foot — part of the body

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