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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 120 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pop — to visit
  3. last — finally
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. foot — a measure
  6. wound — an injury
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. last — to go on
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. wound — an injury
  13. spell — magic
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pop — soda
  16. stand — to bear
  17. spell — letters
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. pop — music
  20. chest — of your body
  21. spell — a short time
  22. chest — a box
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stand — on your feet

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