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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. cap — of ice
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. squash — the sport
  7. march — the month
  8. land — ground
  9. march — music
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cap — a lid
  15. land — to come down
  16. squash — to crush
  17. game — wild animals
  18. land — a country
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. game — a match
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. plane — a tool

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