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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. rest — what's left
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. march — the month
  7. tear — to rip
  8. cap — a hat
  9. spell — a short time
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. cap — of ice
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. march — the month
  14. snap — to click
  15. spell — letters
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. bat — the animal
  18. rest — what's left
  19. tear — from crying
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rest — a break
  24. spell — magic

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