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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. march — music
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. staff — a stick
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. swing — to play on
  8. march — the month
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bore — to tire
  12. march — the month
  13. swing — music
  14. field — farmland
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. field — a subject
  18. sharp — clever
  19. bore — to drill
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. field — for sport
  23. staff — employees
  24. staff — employees

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