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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. wound — an injury
  3. scale — in music
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. chest — a box
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. scale — size or range
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. chest — of your body
  13. rush — hurry
  14. bulb — for light
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. bulb — for light
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. wound — an injury
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a music group
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. sharp — clever
  24. chest — of your body

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