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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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. ground — the earth
  3. bear — the animal
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. march — music
  6. ground — crushed
  7. pop — music
  8. band — a ring
  9. march — the month
  10. board — to get on
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. net — for catching
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. band — a music group
  17. board — a committee
  18. bear — the animal
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. pop — to visit
  21. net — after costs
  22. pop — soda
  23. net — in sport
  24. ground — a position

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