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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  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. mug — a face
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — for golf
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. content — happy
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. mug — a cup
  13. fork — in a road
  14. mug — to rob
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — a trail
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. club — a group
  23. content — the amount
  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