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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. cold — an illness
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bat — the animal
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fork — in a road
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. bark — to shout
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. safe — out of danger

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