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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. swing — music
  3. wound — an injury
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. march — music
  6. content — happy
  7. saw — the tool
  8. content — the amount
  9. season — of the year
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. wound — an injury
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rock — music
  17. march — the month
  18. rock — a stone
  19. swing — in golf
  20. season — in sport
  21. march — the month
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. swing — to play on
  24. saw — the tool

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