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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 116 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. march — the month
  3. march — the month
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. capital — money
  8. craft — boats
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. march — music
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — temperature
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. present — the time now
  17. capital — a city
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. present — a gift
  20. craft — a skill
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. sharp — clever
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. lash — to lash out

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