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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 116 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. shower — rain
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. clip — to cut
  5. pit — in a race
  6. sharp — clever
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. track — a path
  10. rest — what's left
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. track — to keep track
  15. rest — what's left
  16. track — a song
  17. clip — a video
  18. rest — a break
  19. pit — a hole
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. shower — to wash
  23. clip — for paper
  24. wake — a trail

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