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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. march — the month
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. last — to go on
  5. pass — a permit
  6. net — in sport
  7. bass — low music
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. net — after costs
  11. spell — magic
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. chair — a leader
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. last — finally
  16. march — music
  17. bass — the fish
  18. net — for catching
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. last — final
  22. march — the month
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. spell — a short time

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