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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. can — to be able to
  3. march — the month
  4. sharp — clever
  5. band — a ring
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. band — a music group
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — a tin
  14. kick — in football
  15. march — the month
  16. date — the fruit
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. drill — the tool
  22. drill — a practice
  23. march — music
  24. drill — army training

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