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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 120 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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — to go on
  3. field — for sport
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. mark — a trace
  9. field — a subject
  10. content — happy
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. content — the amount
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. mark — a grade
  17. field — farmland
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. last — final
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. pound — a weight

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