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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. march — the month
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. march — the month
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. wound — an injury
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. kick — in football
  9. spring — a coil
  10. wound — an injury
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. march — music
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. spring — of water
  20. rock — music
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. spring — the season
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. leaves — of a tree

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