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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. bass — low music
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. capital — money
  6. ball — a great time
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. cue — a signal
  9. season — in sport
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. last — finally
  15. ball — a dance
  16. capital — a city
  17. bass — the fish
  18. last — final
  19. season — of the year
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. cue — a hint
  22. cue — for pool
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. sharp — clever

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