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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  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. pit — a hole
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. last — final
  5. pit — in a race
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. court — of a king
  8. court — for sport
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. last — to go on
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. last — finally
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. band — a ring
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. hand — in cards
  19. present — a gift
  20. court — of law
  21. present — there
  22. band — a music group
  23. present — the time now
  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