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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. rash — hasty
  3. band — a music group
  4. court — for sport
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. march — the month
  7. march — music
  8. face — to point toward
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. court — of law
  12. march — the month
  13. rash — a series
  14. band — a ring
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. stock — shares
  19. court — of a king
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. face — to confront
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. stock — goods
  24. pitch — completely

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