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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. ground — the earth
  4. mark — a trace
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. content — the amount
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. last — final
  12. content — happy
  13. last — finally
  14. ground — crushed
  15. mark — a grade
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. saw — the tool
  19. date — the fruit
  20. saw — the tool
  21. ground — a position
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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