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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. rest — what's left
  3. mate — to breed
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. hand — help
  6. snap — to click
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. mate — a partner
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. mate — a friend
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a leader
  16. mine — for digging
  17. rest — what's left
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. rest — a break
  20. last — to go on
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. hand — in cards
  23. last — final
  24. mine — belonging to me

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