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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. lie — to recline
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. cold — not warm
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. cold — an illness
  10. last — final
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. fall — to drop
  14. band — a music group
  15. last — finally
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. fall — the season
  19. band — a ring
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. fall — to drop
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. last — to go on
  24. lie — an untruth

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