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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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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: spell · lie · pass · leaves · shower · cold · saw · bat

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. pass — a permit
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bat — the animal
  7. saw — the tool
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. spell — a short time
  12. shower — rain
  13. shower — to wash
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cold — an illness
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. lie — to recline
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. spell — magic
  21. cold — not warm
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. spell — letters

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