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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 120 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. tube — a container
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — clever
  5. firm — steady
  6. tube — the underground
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. spring — of water
  9. fine — high quality
  10. march — music
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. march — the month
  13. last — finally
  14. firm — decided
  15. last — to go on
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. spring — the season
  19. last — final
  20. fine — all right
  21. firm — a company
  22. march — the month
  23. spring — a coil
  24. rash — a series

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