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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. content — happy
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. wake — a trail
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. content — the amount
  10. deal — to handle
  11. last — finally
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. last — final
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — the tool
  19. sharp — clever
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. plane — a tool
  24. perch — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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