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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: mug · last · march · race · can · wake · content · sharp

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. can — to be able to
  3. mug — a cup
  4. last — final
  5. can — a tin
  6. march — the month
  7. race — the arms race
  8. last — finally
  9. content — happy
  10. sharp — clever
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. content — the amount
  14. can — a tin
  15. mug — a face
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. race — humankind
  18. wake — a trail
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. race — a contest
  21. mug — to rob
  22. last — to go on
  23. march — music
  24. march — the month

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