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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. drill — a practice
  4. bass — low music
  5. bat — the animal
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. drill — the tool
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. march — music
  11. drill — army training
  12. march — the month
  13. snap — to click
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. pitch — completely
  16. bass — the fish
  17. mate — a friend
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. mate — a partner
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. march — the month

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