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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. scale — in music
  7. last — final
  8. swing — to play on
  9. scale — size or range
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. firm — a company
  12. swing — in golf
  13. firm — steady
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. firm — decided
  16. row — a line
  17. last — to go on
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. row — to paddle
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — the time now
  22. present — there
  23. swing — music
  24. row — a quarrel

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