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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. last — to go on
  3. mate — to breed
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. last — finally
  7. current — of water
  8. hand — in cards
  9. current — electric
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. foot — a measure
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. land — ground
  14. land — a country
  15. land — to come down
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — help
  18. mate — a friend
  19. content — the amount
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. current — happening now
  22. last — final
  23. sharp — clever
  24. mate — a partner

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