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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: nail · bowl · last · rash · chest · content · mate · present

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. content — the amount
  3. last — finally
  4. mate — a friend
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — final
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. present — there
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. present — a gift
  14. content — happy
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. chest — a box
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mate — a partner
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. rash — hasty
  23. rash — a series
  24. present — the time now

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