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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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. cue — a hint
  3. cue — a signal
  4. chest — of your body
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. wake — a trail
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. row — a line
  13. chest — of your body
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. chest — a box
  16. cue — for pool
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. toast — bread
  20. rush — hurry
  21. sharp — clever
  22. row — to paddle
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. wake — before a funeral

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