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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bass — low music
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bass — the fish
  6. stand — to bear
  7. cue — a signal
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. present — the time now
  12. march — music
  13. present — a gift
  14. march — the month
  15. hand — in cards
  16. cue — a hint
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. hand — help
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. present — there
  21. plane — a tool
  22. cold — an illness
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. bass — the instrument

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