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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. mate — to breed
  3. firm — decided
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. field — for sport
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bear — the animal
  10. firm — steady
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bat — the animal
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. snap — to click
  15. mate — a friend
  16. bass — low music
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. field — a subject
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. mate — a partner
  22. field — farmland
  23. firm — a company
  24. bat — in an idiom

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