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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. last — final
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. wake — a trail
  8. spring — of water
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. vault — a safe
  11. last — to go on
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. craft — a skill
  16. craft — boats
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. shower — rain
  20. spring — the season
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. spring — a coil
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. shower — to wash

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