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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. content — the amount
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. present — the time now
  5. last — final
  6. bound — certain
  7. content — happy
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — in sport
  10. bound — tied together
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — a tin
  13. present — a gift
  14. present — there
  15. game — wild animals
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. season — of the year
  19. can — to be able to
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. pass — a permit
  22. last — finally
  23. bound — obliged
  24. game — a match

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