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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. march — the month
  3. drill — army training
  4. object — to protest
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. season — in sport
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. season — of the year
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. object — an aim
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. drill — a practice
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. ball — a great time
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. object — a thing
  17. ball — a dance
  18. march — music
  19. rock — a stone
  20. drill — the tool
  21. date — the fruit
  22. rock — music
  23. march — the month
  24. season — to add flavour

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