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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. chip — for betting
  3. club — for dancing
  4. rest — what's left
  5. club — for golf
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. fall — to drop
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. mine — for digging
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. fall — to drop
  16. rest — what's left
  17. club — a group
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — to cut
  20. rest — a break
  21. chip — to eat
  22. fall — the season
  23. clip — a video
  24. foot — a measure

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