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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. ground — crushed
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. bat — the animal
  6. prune — to trim
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. mug — a cup
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. plane — a tool
  12. prune — to trim
  13. mug — to rob
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. ground — a position
  16. mug — a face
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. perch — the fish
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. ground — the earth
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. bat — for baseball

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