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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. roll — a list
  3. can — a tin
  4. lean — thin
  5. march — the month
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. roll — a cake
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. band — a ring
  12. lean — to bend
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. last — to go on
  15. last — finally
  16. toast — bread
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. band — a music group
  22. can — to be able to
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. can — a tin

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