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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: snap · season · last · cabinet · lie · date · content · bark

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — finally
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. content — happy
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. snap — to click
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. date — the fruit
  11. content — the amount
  12. lie — to recline
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. season — in sport
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. bark — to shout
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. last — final
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. season — of the year

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