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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. net — for catching
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. rest — what's left
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — for digging
  9. board — to get on
  10. mug — a face
  11. board — a committee
  12. march — music
  13. scale — size or range
  14. march — the month
  15. rest — a break
  16. last — finally
  17. net — after costs
  18. mug — to rob
  19. march — the month
  20. mug — a cup
  21. rest — what's left
  22. last — to go on
  23. net — in sport
  24. scale — in music

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