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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 120 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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. kid — child
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. season — of the year
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. lean — thin
  7. kid — to tease
  8. sharp — clever
  9. march — music
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. lean — to bend
  13. season — in sport
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. mine — for digging
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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