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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — final
  3. press — newspapers
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. sharp — clever
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. last — to go on
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. content — happy
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. lean — to bend
  15. lean — thin
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. press — a publisher
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. deal — to handle
  20. content — the amount
  21. wind — moving air
  22. press — to push
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. wind — moving air

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