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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. ball — a great time
  3. spring — the season
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. wound — an injury
  6. spring — of water
  7. wound — an injury
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. spring — a coil
  10. last — final
  11. ball — a dance
  12. sharp — clever
  13. cue — a signal
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. cue — for pool
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. pass — a permit
  20. last — to go on
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. cue — a hint
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. sharp — with an edge

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