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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. cap — a hat
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. cap — a lid
  5. march — the month
  6. ground — crushed
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — a short time
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. cell — a phone
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. cap — of ice
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. ground — the earth
  18. toast — bread
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. march — the month
  22. ground — a position
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. march — 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