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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. last — finally
  3. march — music
  4. last — final
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. pop — soda
  8. net — for catching
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. pop — to visit
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. stem — to come from
  16. pop — music
  17. rush — hurry
  18. net — in sport
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. march — the month
  22. last — to go on
  23. net — after costs
  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