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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 116 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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. file — a line of people
  3. season — of the year
  4. field — farmland
  5. stock — goods
  6. last — to go on
  7. tear — from crying
  8. press — newspapers
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. march — the month
  11. last — final
  12. stock — shares
  13. march — music
  14. field — for sport
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — to rip
  17. file — a tool
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. last — finally
  20. field — a subject
  21. season — in sport
  22. press — to push
  23. press — a publisher
  24. file — a document

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