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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. tear — from crying
  3. march — music
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. present — a gift
  6. fall — the season
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. present — the time now
  9. fall — to drop
  10. ball — a dance
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. tear — to rip
  14. cell — a phone
  15. mine — for digging
  16. cell — in biology
  17. march — the month
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. present — there
  20. ball — a great time
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fall — to drop
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mine — belonging to me

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