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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. march — the month
  4. mate — to breed
  5. mate — a friend
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. band — a ring
  10. file — a line of people
  11. mate — a partner
  12. file — a document
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. stand — to bear
  18. saw — the tool
  19. ball — a great time
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. board — to get on
  22. board — a committee
  23. file — a tool
  24. ball — a dance

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