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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. march — the month
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. net — after costs
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a ring
  7. foot — a measure
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. net — for catching
  10. face — to confront
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. face — part of the head
  13. present — the time now
  14. row — to paddle
  15. net — in sport
  16. face — to point toward
  17. march — music
  18. row — a line
  19. march — the month
  20. present — a gift
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. present — there
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. roll — a list

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