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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. board — a committee
  6. present — there
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. last — finally
  9. clip — to cut
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. board — to get on
  12. season — in sport
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. clip — a video
  16. season — of the year
  17. last — to go on
  18. present — the time now
  19. clip — for paper
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. present — a gift
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. toast — 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