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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. squash — the sport
  4. drill — a practice
  5. key — the most important part
  6. fine — all right
  7. drill — the tool
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. squash — to crush
  11. pit — a hole
  12. content — happy
  13. key — in music
  14. pit — in a race
  15. drill — army training
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. last — finally
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. content — the amount
  21. fine — high quality
  22. key — for a lock
  23. last — final
  24. content — videos and posts

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