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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: rest · toast · content · snap · last · spell · craft · track

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. last — finally
  3. content — happy
  4. content — the amount
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. rest — what's left
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. track — a song
  10. last — to go on
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. snap — to click
  13. rest — a break
  14. spell — letters
  15. track — a path
  16. craft — a skill
  17. rest — what's left
  18. last — final
  19. craft — boats
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — magic
  24. track — to keep track

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