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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. suit — to fit
  3. present — a gift
  4. suit — clothes
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. suit — in cards
  7. march — the month
  8. face — to point toward
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. face — to confront
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. bass — low music
  14. dip — to sink
  15. bass — the fish
  16. rest — a break
  17. degree — an amount
  18. rest — what's left
  19. present — the time now
  20. degree — temperature
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. degree — from a university
  23. rest — what's left
  24. face — part of the head

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