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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — the time now
  3. club — for dancing
  4. present — there
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. shower — rain
  7. game — a match
  8. club — for golf
  9. game — wild animals
  10. last — final
  11. craft — a skill
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. club — a group
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. last — to go on
  17. last — finally
  18. row — to paddle
  19. craft — boats
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. row — a line
  23. shower — to wash
  24. row — a quarrel

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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