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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. chip — for betting
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. row — a line
  8. row — to paddle
  9. roll — a cake
  10. spring — the season
  11. chip — to eat
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. last — finally
  17. march — the month
  18. last — to go on
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. last — final
  22. spring — of water
  23. spring — a coil
  24. roll — a list

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