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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. last — to go on
  5. lean — thin
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — electric
  10. cold — not warm
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. last — final
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. cold — an illness
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. last — finally
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — in sport
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. current — of water
  24. lean — to bend

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