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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 116 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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. march — music
  4. rush — hurry
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. mug — a face
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. march — the month
  12. mug — a cup
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. bear — the animal
  15. game — wild animals
  16. bear — the animal
  17. mug — to rob
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. snap — to click
  21. game — a match
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. nail — for a hammer

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