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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. perch — the fish
  4. march — the month
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. pop — to visit
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. key — for a lock
  9. tube — the underground
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. march — music
  13. stock — goods
  14. drill — a practice
  15. tube — a container
  16. drill — the tool
  17. march — the month
  18. key — the most important part
  19. stock — shares
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pop — soda
  22. drill — army training
  23. key — in music
  24. pop — music

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