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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 116 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 will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. rest — what's left
  5. mine — for digging
  6. rest — what's left
  7. scale — in music
  8. march — the month
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. spell — letters
  12. pass — a permit
  13. spell — a short time
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. rest — a break
  16. wound — an injury
  17. march — music
  18. wound — an injury
  19. scale — size or range
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. spell — magic
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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