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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. swing — music
  3. prune — to trim
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — the amount
  6. mug — a face
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. mug — to rob
  10. swing — in golf
  11. content — happy
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. mug — a cup
  16. prune — to trim
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. last — finally
  20. swing — to play on
  21. chair — a leader
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. last — to go on

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