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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. dip — to sink
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. key — for a lock
  5. cold — an illness
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. key — the most important part
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. wound — an injury
  13. march — the month
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. wound — an injury
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bat — the animal
  18. cold — not warm
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. march — the month
  22. key — in music
  23. toast — bread
  24. bat — in an idiom

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