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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. kid — to tease
  3. squash — to crush
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. court — of law
  6. last — final
  7. rest — what's left
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. court — for sport
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. last — to go on
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. rest — a break
  15. lean — to bend
  16. court — of a king
  17. squash — the sport
  18. rest — what's left
  19. last — finally
  20. wake — a trail
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. lean — thin
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. kid — child

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