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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. season — of the year
  4. rest — what's left
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. rest — a break
  8. clip — to cut
  9. mug — a face
  10. mug — a cup
  11. last — final
  12. mug — to rob
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. sharp — clever
  15. last — finally
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. clip — for paper
  18. clip — a video
  19. season — in sport
  20. rest — what's left
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. fine — all right
  24. fine — high quality

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