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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 would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. march — music
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. fork — in a road
  5. march — the month
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — the fruit
  10. last — finally
  11. last — to go on
  12. toast — bread
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. pop — to visit
  15. shower — to wash
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pop — soda
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pop — music
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. last — final
  22. march — the month
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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