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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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. last — to go on
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. bulb — for light
  5. march — the month
  6. land — to come down
  7. bear — the animal
  8. march — the month
  9. root — of a word
  10. bulb — for light
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. root — of a plant
  15. chest — a box
  16. root — the cause
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. last — final
  20. last — finally
  21. chest — of your body
  22. land — ground
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. land — a country

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