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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 120 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: plane · march · sharp · cue · snap · wind · last · leaves

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. wind — moving air
  3. last — finally
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. march — the month
  6. cue — for pool
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cue — a hint
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. sharp — clever
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. last — to go on
  19. wind — moving air
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. march — music
  22. plane — a tool
  23. last — final
  24. march — the month

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