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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 116 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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — final
  3. march — the month
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a music group
  7. march — music
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. lean — to bend
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. pit — a hole
  15. pit — in a race
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. lean — thin
  19. mark — a grade
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. mark — a trace
  22. wound — an injury
  23. march — the month
  24. last — finally

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