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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. scale — in music
  3. track — a song
  4. drill — a practice
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. last — finally
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. track — to keep track
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. drill — army training
  16. bear — the animal
  17. track — a path
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. last — final
  21. drill — the tool
  22. scale — size or range
  23. wind — moving air
  24. leaves — of a tree

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