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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. spring — the season
  3. last — final
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. last — to go on
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. spring — a coil
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. present — a gift
  12. season — in sport
  13. last — finally
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. spring — of water
  17. season — of the year
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. shower — to wash
  20. present — the time now
  21. wake — a trail
  22. present — there
  23. shower — rain
  24. nail — on a finger

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