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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. cue — a hint
  3. cue — a signal
  4. file — a line of people
  5. pass — a permit
  6. file — a document
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. capital — money
  9. scale — size or range
  10. capital — a city
  11. bat — the animal
  12. file — a tool
  13. march — the month
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. cue — for pool
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. scale — in music
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. capital — a big letter
  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