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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. last — final
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. shower — rain
  6. foot — a measure
  7. shower — to wash
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — to bend
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. staff — employees
  15. wound — an injury
  16. staff — employees
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. last — finally
  19. lean — thin
  20. date — the fruit
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. wound — an injury
  24. staff — a stick

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