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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — an injury
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. fork — in a road
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. court — of a king
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. mine — for digging
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. chest — of your body
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. court — of law
  22. court — for sport
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. fork — to eat with

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