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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. mate — a friend
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. pop — music
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. last — final
  10. bore — to drill
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. last — to go on
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. mate — to breed
  16. last — finally
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. march — the month
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. cold — not warm
  21. mate — a partner
  22. bore — to tire
  23. pop — soda
  24. cold — the Cold War

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