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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. prune — to trim
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. roll — a list
  7. march — music
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. roll — a cake
  11. spring — a coil
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ball — a great time
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. ball — a dance
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. prune — to trim
  20. march — the month
  21. spring — the season
  22. bat — the animal
  23. spring — of water
  24. ground — a position

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