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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. march — the month
  3. track — a song
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bore — to drill
  6. season — in sport
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. wound — an injury
  9. face — to confront
  10. march — the month
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. march — music
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. track — to keep track
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. season — of the year
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wound — an injury
  22. track — a path
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bore — to tire

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