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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've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. march — the month
  5. spell — magic
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. band — a ring
  8. last — final
  9. cell — a phone
  10. toast — bread
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. cell — in biology
  13. last — to go on
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. march — the month
  16. ball — a dance
  17. ball — a great time
  18. march — music
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. band — a music group
  22. last — finally
  23. spell — letters
  24. cell — in a prison

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