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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. last — final
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. land — to come down
  7. rush — hurry
  8. saw — the tool
  9. track — to keep track
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. land — ground
  14. track — a song
  15. kick — in football
  16. track — a path
  17. last — finally
  18. last — to go on
  19. bark — to shout
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. land — a country
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. rush — a thrill

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