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

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. march — the month
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. chest — of your body
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. march — the month
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. board — to get on
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. board — a committee
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. bear — the animal
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. bear — the animal
  24. 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