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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. pop — soda
  5. spell — a short time
  6. mark — a grade
  7. pop — to visit
  8. present — the time now
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. mark — a trace
  12. present — there
  13. present — a gift
  14. spell — letters
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. row — a line
  18. spell — magic
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. row — to paddle
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — money
  23. pop — music
  24. leaves — of a tree

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