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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. squash — to crush
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. saw — the tool
  5. squash — the sport
  6. pop — music
  7. march — the month
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. pop — to visit
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. march — the month
  15. plane — a tool
  16. spring — the season
  17. pop — soda
  18. march — music
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. kid — child
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. spring — of water
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. spring — a coil

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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