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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 116 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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. last — to go on
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. last — final
  5. spell — letters
  6. branch — a division
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. fall — to drop
  10. wake — a trail
  11. face — to confront
  12. present — there
  13. fall — the season
  14. spell — magic
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. face — part of the head
  17. present — a gift
  18. last — finally
  19. fall — to drop
  20. present — the time now
  21. spell — a short time
  22. face — to point toward
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. trunk — of a tree

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