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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 116 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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. suit — clothes
  4. last — final
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. season — of the year
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. content — the amount
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. suit — to fit
  12. shower — to wash
  13. suit — in cards
  14. last — to go on
  15. shower — rain
  16. clip — to cut
  17. season — in sport
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. saw — the tool
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. content — happy
  22. saw — the tool
  23. clip — for paper
  24. clip — a video

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