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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: calf · wake · last · saw · snap · file · current · toast

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. current — electric
  6. last — finally
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. file — a tool
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. snap — to click
  11. current — happening now
  12. file — a line of people
  13. toast — bread
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. last — to go on
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. saw — the tool
  20. current — of water
  21. file — a document
  22. wake — a trail
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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