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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 116 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. mate — a friend
  3. last — final
  4. scale — size or range
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. rest — what's left
  9. mate — a partner
  10. wound — an injury
  11. prune — to trim
  12. rest — what's left
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. craft — boats
  16. craft — a skill
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. scale — in music
  21. mate — to breed
  22. wound — an injury
  23. last — to go on
  24. rest — a break

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