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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. firm — steady
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. roll — a list
  5. march — the month
  6. clip — a video
  7. march — music
  8. roll — a cake
  9. bear — the animal
  10. firm — a company
  11. bear — the animal
  12. clip — to cut
  13. firm — decided
  14. fork — in a road
  15. season — of the year
  16. mark — a trace
  17. march — the month
  18. mark — a grade
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. clip — for paper
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. season — in sport
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. season — to add flavour

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