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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 120 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. key — in music
  3. face — to confront
  4. field — farmland
  5. key — the most important part
  6. land — ground
  7. march — music
  8. land — to come down
  9. march — the month
  10. field — a subject
  11. face — part of the head
  12. spell — letters
  13. spell — a short time
  14. face — to point toward
  15. spell — magic
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. drill — army training
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. drill — the tool
  20. land — a country
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. field — for sport
  23. drill — a practice
  24. key — for a lock

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