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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. drill — a practice
  5. march — the month
  6. can — a tin
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. present — there
  11. file — a tool
  12. sharp — clever
  13. drill — army training
  14. march — the month
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. file — a line of people
  17. can — to be able to
  18. march — music
  19. present — the time now
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. can — a tin
  22. file — a document
  23. present — a gift
  24. drill — the tool

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