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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 116 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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a leader
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. track — a path
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. hand — in cards
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. perch — the fish
  12. bank — for money
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. track — to keep track
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. track — a song
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. hand — help
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — of a river
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. wind — moving air

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