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

Word bank: rock · bay · last · drill · sharp · toast · deal · arm

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. rock — music
  3. sharp — clever
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. last — final
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. last — finally
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. rock — a stone
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. drill — army training
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. toast — bread
  19. last — to go on
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — a practice
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. deal — to handle

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