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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. board — to get on
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. drill — army training
  8. club — for dancing
  9. drill — a practice
  10. board — a committee
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — a box
  13. kick — in football
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. cold — an illness
  18. chest — of your body
  19. club — for golf
  20. drill — the tool
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. club — a group
  24. cold — not warm

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