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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. wound — an injury
  5. game — wild animals
  6. board — to get on
  7. mine — for digging
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. pop — music
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. board — a committee
  16. pop — soda
  17. rush — hurry
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. game — a match
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. pop — to visit
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wake — before a funeral

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