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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. cold — an illness
  3. sharp — clever
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. cold — not warm
  7. pitch — completely
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. staff — employees
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. staff — employees
  16. can — to be able to
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. staff — a stick
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. can — a tin
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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