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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — final
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. file — a line of people
  5. craft — boats
  6. file — a document
  7. last — finally
  8. mark — a grade
  9. can — a tin
  10. present — a gift
  11. can — a tin
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. file — a tool
  14. can — to be able to
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. date — the fruit
  17. present — there
  18. mark — a trace
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — in sport
  22. craft — a skill
  23. present — the time now
  24. date — on the calendar

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