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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: land · last · cell · toast · bass · mate · pass · calf

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. land — a country
  3. last — finally
  4. mate — a friend
  5. toast — bread
  6. cell — a phone
  7. mate — to breed
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. cell — in biology
  10. last — to go on
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. bass — the fish
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. land — ground
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. pass — a permit
  18. last — final
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. mate — a partner
  21. bass — low music
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. land — to come down
  24. cell — in a prison

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