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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 116 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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. march — music
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. shower — rain
  6. game — a match
  7. wound — an injury
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. wound — an injury
  11. shower — to wash
  12. march — the month
  13. mate — a friend
  14. club — for dancing
  15. game — wild animals
  16. club — a group
  17. mate — a partner
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. mate — to breed
  23. club — for golf
  24. march — the month

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