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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. last — to go on
  3. mate — to breed
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. chest — a box
  6. chest — of your body
  7. can — to be able to
  8. fine — high quality
  9. wound — an injury
  10. can — a tin
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. last — final
  14. last — finally
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wound — an injury
  18. fine — all right
  19. dip — to sink
  20. can — a tin
  21. mate — a partner
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — magic
  24. mate — a friend

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