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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. charge — in control
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. march — the month
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. march — the month
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. charge — electricity
  11. court — for sport
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. cold — not warm
  14. court — of law
  15. bat — the animal
  16. club — for dancing
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. fork — in a road
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. club — for golf
  21. court — of a king
  22. charge — a price
  23. club — a group
  24. cold — the Cold War

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