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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. march — music
  4. shower — to wash
  5. track — to keep track
  6. march — the month
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. shower — rain
  9. mate — a partner
  10. tear — to rip
  11. mate — a friend
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. track — a path
  14. march — the month
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. track — a song
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying

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