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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. mark — a trace
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. tear — from crying
  6. last — finally
  7. tear — to rip
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. cell — in biology
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. mark — a grade
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. cell — a phone
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. last — final
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. sharp — clever
  21. tear — from crying
  22. last — to go on
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. cell — in a prison

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