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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 120 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. march — music
  4. field — for sport
  5. land — a country
  6. field — a subject
  7. rock — a stone
  8. shower — rain
  9. staff — employees
  10. march — the month
  11. last — to go on
  12. rock — music
  13. staff — employees
  14. shower — to wash
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. march — the month
  18. land — to come down
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. staff — a stick
  22. last — finally
  23. field — farmland
  24. last — final

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