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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. roll — a list
  3. cell — a phone
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. lie — to recline
  6. last — to go on
  7. cell — in biology
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. march — music
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. hand — in cards
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. march — the month
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — after costs
  18. last — final
  19. hand — help
  20. net — in sport
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. roll — a cake
  23. last — finally
  24. pitcher — a jug

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