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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. cold — not warm
  3. pit — in a race
  4. cold — an illness
  5. mine — for digging
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. mark — a trace
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pit — a hole
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. present — a gift
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. present — there
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. mark — a grade
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. present — the time now

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