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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pop — music
  4. march — music
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. cap — a hat
  7. toast — bread
  8. march — the month
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. cap — of ice
  12. march — the month
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bat — the animal
  15. branch — a division
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. fork — in a road
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. pop — soda
  21. cap — a lid
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. bat — for baseball

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