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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. tear — to rip
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. last — final
  9. row — to paddle
  10. row — a line
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. tear — from crying
  13. stand — to bear
  14. scale — size or range
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. scale — in music
  21. bat — the animal
  22. last — to go on
  23. tear — from crying
  24. wave — of the sea

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