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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. cap — a hat
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. shower — rain
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. ball — a great time
  10. content — happy
  11. ball — a dance
  12. shower — to wash
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. march — the month
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a lid

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