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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. shower — to wash
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. object — to protest
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a hole
  9. bank — for money
  10. shower — rain
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. last — to go on
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — of a river
  17. hand — help
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. kid — to tease
  21. last — finally
  22. object — an aim
  23. hand — in cards
  24. object — a thing

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