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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: snap · coach · last · calf · date · object · pass · hand

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — final
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. object — to protest
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. last — to go on
  7. hand — help
  8. object — an aim
  9. snap — to click
  10. object — a thing
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. date — the fruit
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. hand — in cards
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. pass — a permit
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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