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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. pop — to visit
  4. band — a ring
  5. march — the month
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. band — a music group
  8. pop — soda
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. pop — music
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — a leader
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. row — a line
  16. race — the arms race
  17. stand — to bear
  18. row — to paddle
  19. race — a contest
  20. march — the month
  21. wake — a trail
  22. march — music
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. race — humankind

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