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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. face — part of the head
  3. track — to keep track
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. drill — army training
  6. squash — the sport
  7. pit — a hole
  8. chest — of your body
  9. track — a path
  10. drill — the tool
  11. march — the month
  12. track — a song
  13. chest — of your body
  14. face — to confront
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. face — to point toward
  17. march — music
  18. drill — a practice
  19. march — the month
  20. squash — to crush
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. chest — a box
  24. pit — in a race

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