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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. key — in music
  4. key — the most important part
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lean — thin
  7. kid — child
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. file — a tool
  12. kid — to tease
  13. spell — a short time
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. spell — letters
  16. key — for a lock
  17. spell — magic
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. saw — the tool
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a document
  22. plane — a tool
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. saw — the tool

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