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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: present · bat · mug · mark · suit · cold · last · saw

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. cold — not warm
  3. mark — a grade
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. last — final
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. saw — the tool
  10. mug — a cup
  11. suit — to fit
  12. cold — an illness
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. mug — a face
  15. mug — to rob
  16. mark — a trace
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. suit — in cards
  20. present — a gift
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — finally
  23. present — there
  24. suit — clothes

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