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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 always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. last — final
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. wind — moving air
  7. drill — the tool
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. content — the amount
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. drill — army training
  13. content — happy
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. board — a committee
  17. board — to get on
  18. drill — a practice
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. last — to go on
  21. wind — moving air
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. last — finally
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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