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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. suit — in cards
  3. clip — to cut
  4. march — music
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. rush — hurry
  7. degree — an amount
  8. suit — to fit
  9. degree — temperature
  10. pit — a hole
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — in golf
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. pit — in a race
  16. degree — from a university
  17. clip — a video
  18. swing — to play on
  19. march — the month
  20. suit — clothes
  21. clip — for paper
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. lie — to recline
  24. rush — to hurry

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