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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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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 works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. clip — for paper
  3. season — of the year
  4. ball — a dance
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. game — a match
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. clip — to cut
  11. game — wild animals
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. wind — moving air
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. season — in sport
  16. saw — the tool
  17. ball — a great time
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. wind — moving air
  21. clip — a video
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. leaves — to go away

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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