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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. march — music
  3. scale — in music
  4. last — finally
  5. cell — a phone
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. clip — to cut
  8. craft — a skill
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. craft — boats
  11. bulb — for light
  12. cell — in biology
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. scale — size or range
  15. last — to go on
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. march — the month
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. bulb — for light
  20. clip — for paper
  21. march — the month
  22. last — final
  23. clip — a video
  24. hide — to keep secret

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