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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 116 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. lean — thin
  3. plane — a tool
  4. game — a match
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. spell — letters
  8. stock — shares
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. stock — goods
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. game — wild animals
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. spell — magic
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. lean — to bend
  22. branch — a division
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. spell — a short time

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