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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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. squash — the sport
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. track — to keep track
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — a leader
  8. squash — to crush
  9. net — in sport
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. bulb — for light
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. track — a path
  14. bulb — for light
  15. track — a song
  16. march — music
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. net — after costs
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. net — for catching
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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