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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 116 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. net — for catching
  6. root — the cause
  7. squash — the sport
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. root — of a word
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. root — of a plant
  13. rash — a series
  14. net — in sport
  15. mark — a trace
  16. rash — hasty
  17. mark — a grade
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. squash — to crush
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. net — after costs
  24. pound — a weight

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