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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. march — the month
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. march — the month
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. march — music
  9. date — the fruit
  10. roll — a cake
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — to crush
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. toast — bread
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. squash — the sport
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. perch — the fish

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