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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mug — a face
  6. roll — a cake
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. date — the fruit
  10. pound — a weight
  11. face — to confront
  12. march — the month
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. mug — a cup
  15. capital — a city
  16. mug — to rob
  17. face — to point toward
  18. march — music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. face — part of the head
  22. roll — a list
  23. capital — money
  24. march — the month

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