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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 120 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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. fall — the season
  6. march — the month
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. track — a song
  9. fall — to drop
  10. squash — to crush
  11. chest — of your body
  12. sharp — clever
  13. squash — the sport
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. track — to keep track
  16. track — a path
  17. march — music
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bass — the fish
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chest — a box
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bass — low music
  24. squash — the vegetable

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