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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. can — a tin
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. can — a tin
  7. last — to go on
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. content — happy
  18. content — the amount
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. last — finally
  21. season — in sport
  22. wound — an injury
  23. can — to be able to
  24. last — final

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