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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: mate · court · chest · saw · lash · cap · present · march

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. saw — the tool
  3. present — the time now
  4. court — for sport
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. march — music
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. mate — a partner
  10. chest — a box
  11. march — the month
  12. cap — a lid
  13. saw — the tool
  14. present — there
  15. court — of a king
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. present — a gift
  18. court — of law
  19. mate — a friend
  20. chest — of your body
  21. march — the month
  22. cap — a hat
  23. cap — of ice
  24. chest — of your body

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