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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. march — the month
  3. staff — employees
  4. swing — to play on
  5. spring — a coil
  6. staff — a stick
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. swing — in golf
  10. swing — music
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. lean — to bend
  13. march — the month
  14. staff — employees
  15. mine — for digging
  16. spring — the season
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — the animal
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. march — music
  21. lean — thin
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. spring — of water
  24. leaves — lets stay

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