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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. lie — to recline
  4. court — for sport
  5. present — a gift
  6. staff — employees
  7. game — wild animals
  8. net — after costs
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. staff — a stick
  11. scale — size or range
  12. staff — employees
  13. present — there
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. net — for catching
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. present — the time now
  19. court — of a king
  20. game — a match
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. court — of law
  23. scale — in music
  24. net — in sport

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