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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. squash — to crush
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. mug — a face
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. squash — the sport
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. mug — a cup
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pit — a hole
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. mug — to rob
  23. march — the month
  24. coach — a trainer

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