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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. scale — in music
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. can — to be able to
  9. march — the month
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. drill — army training
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. drill — a practice
  14. press — to push
  15. stem — to come from
  16. scale — size or range
  17. drill — the tool
  18. march — the month
  19. clip — to cut
  20. can — a tin
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. press — newspapers
  23. press — a publisher
  24. march — 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