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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — hasty
  3. shower — to wash
  4. march — music
  5. march — the month
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — in biology
  9. firm — a company
  10. last — finally
  11. shower — rain
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. last — to go on
  14. march — the month
  15. pass — a permit
  16. firm — decided
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. saw — the tool
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. saw — the tool
  21. firm — steady
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. last — final
  24. cell — a phone

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