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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. staff — employees
  3. scale — size or range
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. march — the month
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. wind — moving air
  8. march — music
  9. wound — an injury
  10. lean — thin
  11. fall — to drop
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. staff — a stick
  16. fall — the season
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. fall — to drop
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. lean — to bend
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. staff — employees
  23. scale — in music
  24. wind — moving air

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