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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. stand — to bear
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. mate — a partner
  7. current — of water
  8. march — music
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. date — the fruit
  14. march — the month
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. march — the month
  19. mate — to breed
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. current — electric
  24. current — happening now

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