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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. club — for golf
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. cell — a phone
  5. last — final
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. club — for dancing
  8. pass — a permit
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. pop — to visit
  11. ground — the earth
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. spring — the season
  15. last — to go on
  16. ground — crushed
  17. pop — soda
  18. ground — a position
  19. pop — music
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — of water
  22. cell — in biology
  23. last — finally
  24. club — a group

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