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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. snap — to click
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. season — in sport
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. fork — in a road
  9. season — of the year
  10. last — to go on
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. band — a ring
  15. ground — crushed
  16. saw — the tool
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. band — a music group
  20. ground — the earth
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. ground — a position
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. last — final

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