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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. key — the most important part
  3. spell — a short time
  4. court — of law
  5. land — to come down
  6. row — to paddle
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tube — a container
  9. land — a country
  10. key — for a lock
  11. row — a line
  12. march — the month
  13. key — in music
  14. toast — bread
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. spell — magic
  17. court — of a king
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. spell — letters
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. court — for sport
  23. land — ground
  24. march — the month

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