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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 116 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. bat — the animal
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. swing — to play on
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wake — a trail
  13. prune — to trim
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. march — music
  18. sharp — clever
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. swing — in golf
  22. march — the month
  23. swing — music
  24. march — the month

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