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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. hand — in cards
  7. march — the month
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. mark — a grade
  12. rest — what's left
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. capital — a city
  16. rock — music
  17. march — music
  18. rock — a stone
  19. hand — help
  20. season — in sport
  21. march — the month
  22. mark — a trace
  23. capital — money
  24. season — of the year

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