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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. drill — a practice
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. pop — music
  7. pop — to visit
  8. pop — soda
  9. cold — not warm
  10. drill — army training
  11. land — ground
  12. land — a country
  13. lie — to recline
  14. march — music
  15. drill — the tool
  16. cold — an illness
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cap — of ice
  20. cap — a lid
  21. march — the month
  22. march — the month
  23. cap — a hat
  24. land — to come down

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