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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pop — soda
  6. tube — a container
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tube — the underground
  10. march — the month
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. pop — music
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — not warm
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. cell — in biology
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. cold — an illness

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