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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. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. roll — a list
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. date — the fruit
  6. bat — the animal
  7. deal — to handle
  8. sharp — clever
  9. march — the month
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. roll — a cake
  13. mine — for digging
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. spell — a short time
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. spell — letters
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. march — music
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. march — the month
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. spell — magic

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