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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. can — a tin
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. can — a tin
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. can — to be able to
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. date — the fruit
  13. season — of the year
  14. ground — a position
  15. ground — the earth
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. last — finally
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. ground — crushed
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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