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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. ground — the earth
  5. pit — in a race
  6. root — of a word
  7. ground — crushed
  8. root — the cause
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. pit — a hole
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. march — the month
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. wake — a trail
  19. ground — a position
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. march — the month
  22. root — of a plant
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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