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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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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: calf · perch · date · lash · press · kid · pop · march

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. march — the month
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. pop — to visit
  6. march — the month
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. press — newspapers
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. press — to push
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. date — the fruit
  16. pop — soda
  17. march — music
  18. kid — to tease
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. kid — child
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. pop — music
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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