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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. march — the month
  4. club — a group
  5. face — part of the head
  6. band — a music group
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. face — to point toward
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. bat — the animal
  12. march — the month
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. face — to confront
  18. fork — in a road
  19. band — a ring
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. club — for golf
  22. march — music
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. sharp — clever

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