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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. last — to go on
  3. spell — magic
  4. last — final
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. spell — letters
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. fine — high quality
  11. fine — all right
  12. clip — for paper
  13. spell — a short time
  14. lie — to recline
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. hand — in cards
  17. clip — to cut
  18. toast — bread
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — help
  23. last — finally
  24. clip — a video

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