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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. pitch — completely
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. march — music
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. ground — the earth
  14. dip — to sink
  15. ground — a position
  16. race — a contest
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. race — humankind
  19. fork — in a road
  20. shower — to wash
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. race — the arms race
  23. ground — crushed
  24. shower — rain

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