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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bulb — for light
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. mate — a friend
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. mate — to breed
  7. prune — to trim
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — final
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. fine — all right
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. fine — high quality
  16. pass — a permit
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. bulb — for light
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. content — the amount
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. prune — to trim
  23. mate — a partner
  24. last — finally

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