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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. fine — high quality
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. fine — all right
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. rock — a stone
  8. spell — a short time
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. ball — a great time
  11. board — a committee
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. branch — a division
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. sharp — clever
  16. spell — letters
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. spell — magic
  21. board — to get on
  22. ball — a dance
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. leaves — of a tree

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