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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. current — happening now
  3. spell — a short time
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. shower — to wash
  7. stock — goods
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. season — of the year
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. spell — magic
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. current — electric
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. current — of water
  17. foot — a measure
  18. stock — shares
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. spell — letters
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. shower — rain
  24. leaves — to go away

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