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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 120 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. suit — to fit
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. spring — the season
  6. suit — clothes
  7. spring — a coil
  8. current — of water
  9. spring — of water
  10. current — electric
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. ground — the earth
  15. clip — for paper
  16. ground — crushed
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. clip — to cut
  19. season — of the year
  20. ground — a position
  21. suit — in cards
  22. clip — a video
  23. current — happening now
  24. season — in sport

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