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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 116 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: march · straw · face · pit · sharp · object · rest · kid

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. face — part of the head
  3. march — music
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. pit — a hole
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. object — an aim
  9. kid — child
  10. face — to confront
  11. sharp — clever
  12. object — a thing
  13. rest — what's left
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pit — in a race
  18. object — to protest
  19. march — the month
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — a break
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. face — to point toward
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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