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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 120 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: last · stand · snap · bowl · march · capital · plane · bat

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. march — the month
  3. last — finally
  4. capital — a city
  5. snap — to click
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. plane — a tool
  8. stand — to bear
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. last — to go on
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. march — the month
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. last — final
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. capital — money
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. bat — the animal
  24. plane — an aircraft

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