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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. tube — the underground
  3. march — the month
  4. firm — decided
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. chair — a leader
  7. field — for sport
  8. march — the month
  9. field — farmland
  10. firm — steady
  11. toast — bread
  12. tube — a container
  13. firm — a company
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. bat — the animal
  19. field — a subject
  20. march — music
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. toast — the most admired

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