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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — music
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. sharp — clever
  6. shower — rain
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. face — to confront
  9. march — the month
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. plane — a tool
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. shower — to wash
  16. wind — moving air
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. wind — moving air
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. face — part of the head
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. face — to point toward
  24. foot — a measure

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