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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. key — the most important part
  4. game — a match
  5. craft — a skill
  6. key — in music
  7. key — for a lock
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. stock — goods
  14. craft — boats
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. deal — to handle
  19. stock — shares
  20. bat — the animal
  21. game — wild animals
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. fork — in a road
  24. bat — in an idiom

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