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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. last — final
  3. face — to confront
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. lean — to bend
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. spell — letters
  8. cap — of ice
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. game — wild animals
  12. last — to go on
  13. face — part of the head
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cap — a hat
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. spell — magic
  18. face — to point toward
  19. lean — thin
  20. last — finally
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. spell — a short time
  24. mouse — the animal

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