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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. spring — a coil
  5. ball — a dance
  6. ball — a great time
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. mate — to breed
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. spring — the season
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. mate — a partner
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bark — to shout
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. tube — the underground
  20. bat — the animal
  21. tube — a container
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. spring — of water

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