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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: sharp · cap · kid · mouse · date · present · march · perch

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. present — a gift
  6. present — the time now
  7. sharp — clever
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. march — music
  10. perch — the fish
  11. cap — a hat
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. kid — child
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. cap — a lid
  17. present — there
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. march — the month
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. date — the fruit
  24. cap — of ice

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