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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. last — final
  8. content — the amount
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. mine — for digging
  11. last — to go on
  12. sharp — clever
  13. ground — the earth
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. tube — the underground
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. tube — a container
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. last — finally
  20. season — in sport
  21. ground — a position
  22. content — happy
  23. branch — a division
  24. ground — crushed

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