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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. last — to go on
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. mug — a cup
  5. track — to keep track
  6. cap — of ice
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cap — a lid
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. land — ground
  11. land — to come down
  12. mug — to rob
  13. hand — in cards
  14. fine — high quality
  15. track — a song
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. mug — a face
  18. last — finally
  19. pit — a hole
  20. land — a country
  21. track — a path
  22. pit — in a race
  23. hand — help
  24. fine — all right

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