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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. board — to get on
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. clip — to cut
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. march — the month
  7. snap — to click
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. wound — an injury
  12. march — music
  13. wound — an injury
  14. prune — to trim
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. clip — a video
  17. toast — bread
  18. board — a committee
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. clip — for paper
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. prune — to trim

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