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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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. march — music
  3. staff — employees
  4. shower — rain
  5. staff — employees
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. fork — in a road
  8. track — a path
  9. track — to keep track
  10. track — a song
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. clip — to cut
  13. shower — to wash
  14. present — there
  15. march — the month
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. present — the time now
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. clip — a video
  21. staff — a stick
  22. present — a gift
  23. clip — for paper
  24. march — the month

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