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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 120 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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. sharp — clever
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. present — a gift
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. present — the time now
  8. ball — a dance
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. swing — in golf
  12. dip — to sink
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. swing — music
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. ball — a great time
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. fork — in a road
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. swing — to play on
  24. present — there

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