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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bulb — for light
  3. last — final
  4. land — ground
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. drill — a practice
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. land — a country
  10. drill — the tool
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. land — to come down
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. saw — the tool
  16. stand — to bear
  17. saw — the tool
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. last — finally
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bulb — for light
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. drill — army training
  24. wake — a trail

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