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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. last — to go on
  3. march — the month
  4. track — to keep track
  5. ball — a dance
  6. march — music
  7. mine — for digging
  8. fall — the season
  9. track — a song
  10. plane — a tool
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. last — finally
  14. last — final
  15. track — a path
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. march — the month
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. craft — a skill
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. craft — boats
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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