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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — a practice
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. mark — a grade
  12. mark — a trace
  13. drill — the tool
  14. march — music
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — child
  17. march — the month
  18. mark — to pay attention

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