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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. bass — low music
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. date — the fruit
  7. rest — a break
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a dance
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — to bend
  14. row — to paddle
  15. lean — thin
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rest — what's left
  18. bass — the fish
  19. march — the month
  20. ball — a great time
  21. bat — the animal
  22. march — music
  23. row — a line
  24. rest — what's left

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