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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. face — part of the head
  6. cold — not warm
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. face — to point toward
  9. bass — low music
  10. bear — the animal
  11. march — music
  12. can — to be able to
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. bear — the animal
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — a tin
  19. cold — an illness
  20. pitch — completely
  21. march — the month
  22. face — to confront
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. mouse — the animal

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