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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. march — the month
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. clip — a video
  5. last — to go on
  6. mate — a friend
  7. clip — to cut
  8. bear — the animal
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. season — of the year
  11. march — music
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. season — in sport
  14. mate — a partner
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. march — the month
  17. last — finally
  18. clip — for paper
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. bear — the animal
  21. last — final
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. mate — to breed

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