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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. There's no middle ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. ground — a position
  3. march — the month
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. ground — crushed
  8. toast — bread
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. field — a subject
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. field — for sport
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. scale — in music
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. march — music
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. field — farmland
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. date — the fruit
  22. ground — the earth
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. date — on the calendar

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