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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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. bear — to put up with
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. spring — the season
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. last — finally
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. sharp — clever
  11. spring — of water
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. saw — the tool
  15. bear — the animal
  16. saw — the tool
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. last — final
  19. pound — a weight
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bear — the animal
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. wake — a trail
  24. lash — to lash out

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