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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  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. leaves — of a tree
  2. roll — a list
  3. club — for dancing
  4. race — humankind
  5. pop — music
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. cold — an illness
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. pop — to visit
  10. race — a contest
  11. pop — soda
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. snap — to click
  14. club — for golf
  15. cold — not warm
  16. race — the arms race
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. roll — a cake
  19. season — of the year
  20. club — a group
  21. season — in sport
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. roll — on a roll
  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