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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. mate — a friend
  3. cap — a lid
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — to play on
  6. mate — a partner
  7. net — in sport
  8. net — after costs
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. cold — an illness
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. rule — a law
  13. net — for catching
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. board — a committee
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. rule — government
  19. cold — not warm
  20. board — to get on
  21. mate — to breed
  22. cap — a hat
  23. cap — of ice
  24. swing — music

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