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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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. cell — a phone
  3. sharp — clever
  4. club — for golf
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. face — to confront
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. chip — for betting
  11. cell — in biology
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. face — part of the head
  17. club — a group
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. chip — to eat
  22. club — for dancing
  23. bat — the animal
  24. face — to point toward

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