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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. sharp — clever
  5. rest — what's left
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. last — finally
  8. rest — a break
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. rest — what's left
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. season — in sport
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — to paddle
  17. season — of the year
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — a phone
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. last — final
  23. row — a line
  24. sharp — with an edge

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