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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: shower · leaves · face · season · cold · scale · pit · spell

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. scale — in music
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. shower — rain
  5. spell — magic
  6. cold — an illness
  7. spell — a short time
  8. spell — letters
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. scale — size or range
  11. cold — not warm
  12. season — in sport
  13. pit — a hole
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. face — to point toward
  17. shower — to wash
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. face — part of the head
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. face — to confront
  24. pit — in a race

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