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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. cell — a phone
  3. rush — hurry
  4. march — the month
  5. bass — low music
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. cell — in biology
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. march — music
  11. cap — of ice
  12. cap — a hat
  13. chair — a leader
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. spell — magic
  18. bass — the fish
  19. spell — letters
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. spell — a short time

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