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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. march — music
  4. file — a document
  5. last — final
  6. bat — the animal
  7. march — the month
  8. stand — to bear
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. last — finally
  12. pound — a weight
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. file — a line of people
  18. march — the month
  19. file — a tool
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. last — to go on
  24. bat — in an idiom

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