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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. drill — a practice
  3. march — the month
  4. field — a subject
  5. net — in sport
  6. suit — in cards
  7. drill — army training
  8. suit — clothes
  9. bass — low music
  10. bass — the fish
  11. net — for catching
  12. wake — a trail
  13. net — after costs
  14. march — music
  15. stock — goods
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. stock — shares
  19. field — for sport
  20. suit — to fit
  21. field — farmland
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. march — the month
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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