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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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468
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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. fine — all right
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. march — the month
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. kick — in football
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. wound — an injury
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. fine — high quality
  15. wound — an injury
  16. mine — for digging
  17. wake — a trail
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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