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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. fall — the season
  3. rest — a break
  4. fall — to drop
  5. last — to go on
  6. cue — a hint
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. squash — to crush
  11. last — final
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. capital — a city
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. fall — to drop
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. squash — the sport
  18. cue — a signal
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. bat — the animal
  21. cue — for pool
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. last — finally
  24. rest — what's left

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