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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 124 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. spring — a coil
  3. bass — the fish
  4. staff — a stick
  5. spring — the season
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bore — to tire
  8. staff — employees
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. march — the month
  11. march — music
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — a phone
  16. bore — to drill
  17. chest — a box
  18. spring — of water
  19. cell — in biology
  20. fork — in a road
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bass — low music
  23. staff — employees
  24. fork — a garden tool

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