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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — final
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. content — the amount
  5. lean — to bend
  6. content — happy
  7. land — to come down
  8. board — to get on
  9. spell — letters
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. prune — to trim
  12. last — to go on
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. lean — thin
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. spell — a short time
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. land — a country
  20. spell — magic
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. land — ground
  23. board — a committee
  24. lean — to rest against

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