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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. season — of the year
  3. fine — high quality
  4. scale — size or range
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. mate — a friend
  7. mate — a partner
  8. last — finally
  9. hand — help
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. march — music
  13. season — in sport
  14. fine — all right
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. hand — in cards
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. march — the month
  20. pass — a permit
  21. last — final
  22. last — to go on
  23. march — the month
  24. pass — to succeed

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