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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. fall — the season
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. squash — the sport
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. stock — shares
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bark — to shout
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. saw — the tool
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. fall — to drop
  14. saw — the tool
  15. march — the month
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. squash — to crush
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. march — music
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. stock — goods
  23. lie — to recline
  24. lie — an untruth

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