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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. date — the fruit
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. march — the month
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. board — a committee
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. board — to get on
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. bass — low music
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. bass — the fish
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. sharp — clever
  24. arm — a part of something

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