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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 116 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 · squash · face · present · land · bay · last · sharp

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. last — to go on
  3. face — to point toward
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. last — final
  6. land — a country
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. squash — the sport
  9. face — to confront
  10. present — there
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. present — a gift
  13. fine — all right
  14. land — ground
  15. land — to come down
  16. last — finally
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. sharp — clever
  21. face — part of the head
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. present — the time now
  24. squash — to crush

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