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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. sharp — clever
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. march — the month
  5. last — finally
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. march — the month
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. scale — in music
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. fork — in a road
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. last — to go on
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. march — music
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. last — final
  23. scale — size or range
  24. lash — an eyelash

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