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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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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. fork — in a road
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — for digging
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. wind — moving air
  9. face — to point toward
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. deal — to handle
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. face — part of the head
  16. face — to confront
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. fork — to eat with

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