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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rest — a break
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. march — the month
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. rest — what's left
  8. club — for dancing
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. march — music
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. rest — what's left
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. club — a group
  16. club — for golf
  17. bulb — for light
  18. wake — a trail
  19. march — the month
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. bulb — for light

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