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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. scale — in music
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. last — to go on
  9. scale — size or range
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. last — finally
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. foot — a measure
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. date — the fruit
  24. racket — for tennis

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