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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: file · march · toast · mug · bay · swing · snap · patient

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. swing — to play on
  3. mug — to rob
  4. swing — in golf
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. march — the month
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. mug — a cup
  18. snap — to click
  19. swing — music
  20. file — a tool
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. mug — a face

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