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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. track — a song
  4. march — the month
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. degree — from a university
  8. press — a publisher
  9. degree — temperature
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. march — music
  12. track — to keep track
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. track — a path
  16. degree — an amount
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. content — happy
  21. press — newspapers
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. press — to push
  24. content — the amount

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