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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: march · bulb · ball · face · fall · sharp · cue · file

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. march — the month
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. face — to point toward
  7. file — a document
  8. cue — for pool
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. sharp — clever
  11. bulb — for light
  12. file — a tool
  13. face — to confront
  14. bulb — for light
  15. face — part of the head
  16. march — music
  17. file — a line of people
  18. ball — a great time
  19. ball — a dance
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. cue — a signal
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. cue — a hint
  24. march — the month

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