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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. pound — a weight
  6. fall — to drop
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. cold — an illness
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. cold — not warm
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. sharp — clever
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fall — the season
  18. wound — an injury
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. season — in sport
  22. fall — to drop
  23. season — of the year
  24. coach — a trainer

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