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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: fine · wound · press · last · mate · kick · perch · content

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. fine — all right
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — to breed
  5. press — a publisher
  6. content — the amount
  7. kick — in football
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. last — final
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. last — finally
  16. fine — high quality
  17. content — happy
  18. press — to push
  19. last — to go on
  20. perch — the fish
  21. press — newspapers
  22. wound — an injury
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. kick — a thrill

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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