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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 112 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. march — music
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. rush — hurry
  7. stem — to come from
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — to tire
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. march — the month
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. stem — a stem cell

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