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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. rock — music
  4. bat — the animal
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. spring — the season
  7. saw — the tool
  8. spring — of water
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. rock — a stone
  11. march — music
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. saw — the tool
  17. march — the month
  18. spring — a coil

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