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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. bear — the animal
  3. mate — to breed
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. race — humankind
  6. last — to go on
  7. bear — the animal
  8. drill — army training
  9. mate — a partner
  10. last — finally
  11. mate — a friend
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. drill — a practice
  15. saw — the tool
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. race — a contest
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. race — the arms race
  22. drill — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. mine — for digging

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