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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. firm — decided
  3. chest — of your body
  4. spring — a coil
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. spell — magic
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. chest — a box
  11. sharp — clever
  12. dip — to sink
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. spell — a short time
  15. stem — to come from
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. last — finally
  18. firm — steady
  19. chest — of your body
  20. spell — letters
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. firm — a company
  24. last — final

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