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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. net — for catching
  3. key — for a lock
  4. march — the month
  5. march — music
  6. key — in music
  7. net — in sport
  8. squash — to crush
  9. fall — to drop
  10. chest — of your body
  11. key — the most important part
  12. fall — to drop
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. net — after costs
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. chest — of your body
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. squash — the sport
  22. march — the month
  23. chest — a box
  24. fall — the season

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