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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. march — the month
  4. band — a music group
  5. court — for sport
  6. prune — to trim
  7. cap — of ice
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. court — of law
  11. band — a ring
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. cap — a lid
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. cap — a hat
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. rash — a series
  19. court — of a king
  20. rash — hasty
  21. march — music
  22. kick — in football
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. prune — to trim

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