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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. march — the month
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. march — music
  9. sharp — clever
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. land — to come down
  12. prune — to trim
  13. bear — the animal
  14. land — ground
  15. ball — a great time
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bat — the animal
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. land — a country
  22. ball — a dance
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. march — the month

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