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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. squash — to crush
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ball — a great time
  8. mug — a face
  9. march — the month
  10. chest — a box
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. march — music
  14. pass — a permit
  15. chest — of your body
  16. date — the fruit
  17. mug — a cup
  18. degree — an amount
  19. degree — from a university
  20. mug — to rob
  21. chest — of your body
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. degree — temperature
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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