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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 120 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. season — in sport
  4. chest — a box
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. board — to get on
  7. last — final
  8. board — a committee
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. prune — to trim
  11. season — of the year
  12. rush — hurry
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. last — finally
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. content — the amount
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. content — happy
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. last — to go on

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