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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. march — the month
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. march — music
  7. wake — a trail
  8. fork — in a road
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bulb — for light
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. clip — for paper
  13. capital — money
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. capital — a city
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. bulb — for light
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. march — the month
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. clip — a video
  24. fork — a garden 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