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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  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. march — the month
  2. drill — army training
  3. scale — size or range
  4. court — of law
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. game — wild animals
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — music
  11. drill — a practice
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. drill — the tool
  15. march — music
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. court — for sport
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. court — of a king
  20. scale — in music
  21. game — a match
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. pop — to visit
  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