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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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. spell — letters
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. spell — a short time
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. file — a tool
  8. press — newspapers
  9. file — a document
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. season — in sport
  12. bat — the animal
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. press — a publisher
  17. spell — magic
  18. press — to push
  19. stem — to come from
  20. file — a line of people
  21. sharp — clever
  22. season — of the year
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. sharp — with an edge

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