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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. lean — thin
  4. lie — to recline
  5. charge — in control
  6. roll — a list
  7. wind — moving air
  8. charge — a price
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — happy
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lean — to bend
  13. march — the month
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. march — the month
  18. row — to paddle
  19. roll — a cake
  20. row — a line
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. charge — electricity
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. lie — an untruth

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