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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 120 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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  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. ball — a round shape
  2. march — the month
  3. ball — a great time
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. cell — a phone
  7. sharp — clever
  8. press — a publisher
  9. cue — a signal
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. cue — a hint
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. press — to push
  18. cue — for pool
  19. march — music
  20. ball — a dance
  21. press — newspapers
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. cell — in biology
  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