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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. cell — a phone
  4. wound — an injury
  5. last — final
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — finally
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. court — of law
  10. current — happening now
  11. pop — music
  12. court — of a king
  13. current — electric
  14. pop — soda
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. cell — in biology
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. current — of water
  19. court — for sport
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. pop — to visit

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