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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. craft — boats
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. cold — an illness
  5. branch — a division
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. cold — not warm
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. lie — to recline
  12. row — a line
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. craft — a skill
  15. season — of the year
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. season — in sport
  19. row — to paddle
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. lie — an untruth

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