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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. snap — to click
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. row — a line
  5. march — the month
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. march — music
  9. row — to paddle
  10. fine — high quality
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. march — the month
  13. season — in sport
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. date — the fruit
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. season — of the year
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. fine — all right
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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