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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
468
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: plane · bark · row · leaves · patient · last · content · toast

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. plane — a tool
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. last — final
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. toast — bread
  17. content — the amount
  18. bark — to shout
  19. content — happy
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. row — a line
  22. row — to paddle
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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