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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. track — a song
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. march — music
  7. stem — to come from
  8. march — the month
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. track — a path
  13. mine — for digging
  14. track — to keep track
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. patient — a sick person

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