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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. cap — a hat
  3. mate — to breed
  4. march — music
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. wind — moving air
  7. march — the month
  8. bat — the animal
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. cap — of ice
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. mate — a friend
  15. court — for sport
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mate — a partner
  19. rush — hurry
  20. court — of a king
  21. cap — a lid
  22. march — the month
  23. wind — moving air
  24. court — of law

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