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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. march — the month
  3. bore — to tire
  4. last — to go on
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. last — finally
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. bore — to drill
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. last — final
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. date — the fruit
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. safe — a strongbox

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