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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — finally
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. field — farmland
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. hand — in cards
  12. field — for sport
  13. bear — the animal
  14. last — final
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. wake — a trail
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. field — a subject
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bear — the animal
  24. hand — help

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