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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. last — finally
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. march — music
  5. drill — army training
  6. net — in sport
  7. cell — a phone
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. pop — soda
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. drill — the tool
  13. net — for catching
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. cell — in biology
  16. sharp — clever
  17. stand — to bear
  18. march — the month
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. drill — a practice
  21. march — the month
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. net — after costs
  24. pop — to visit

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