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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: march · bat · press · safe · bay · date · content · bass

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bass — the fish
  3. content — happy
  4. content — the amount
  5. march — music
  6. bass — low music
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. march — the month
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. press — a publisher
  16. bat — the animal
  17. press — to push
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. march — the month
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. date — the fruit
  22. press — newspapers
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. bat — for baseball

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