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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. swing — music
  3. can — a tin
  4. bore — to tire
  5. last — to go on
  6. can — a tin
  7. key — in music
  8. march — the month
  9. swing — in golf
  10. swing — to play on
  11. key — for a lock
  12. march — the month
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a line of people
  15. lean — thin
  16. last — finally
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bore — to drill
  21. file — a document
  22. lean — to bend
  23. march — music
  24. can — to be able to

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