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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 116 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. land — a country
  4. land — to come down
  5. mate — a partner
  6. tear — to rip
  7. march — music
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. fork — in a road
  11. scale — size or range
  12. squash — to crush
  13. squash — the sport
  14. mate — a friend
  15. bear — the animal
  16. march — the month
  17. scale — in music
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. land — ground
  21. mate — to breed
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. bear — the animal

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