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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. mate — a friend
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rock — a stone
  10. row — a line
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. wound — an injury
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. march — the month
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. mate — a partner
  19. row — to paddle
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. sharp — clever
  22. mate — to breed
  23. wound — an injury
  24. deal — to handle

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