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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. squash — the sport
  3. march — the month
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. squash — to crush
  6. fine — all right
  7. march — the month
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. pop — music
  10. pop — to visit
  11. field — farmland
  12. sharp — clever
  13. field — for sport
  14. fine — high quality
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. fork — in a road
  17. field — a subject
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. march — music
  23. pop — soda
  24. fork — a garden tool

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