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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. season — in sport
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. sharp — clever
  11. cold — an illness
  12. capital — money
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. vault — a safe
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. capital — a city
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. season — of the year
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. cold — not warm
  24. pound — a weight

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