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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. fine — all right
  3. suit — in cards
  4. chest — of your body
  5. suit — clothes
  6. suit — to fit
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. press — to push
  9. staff — employees
  10. march — the month
  11. staff — employees
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. chest — of your body
  14. march — the month
  15. last — to go on
  16. fine — high quality
  17. last — finally
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. press — newspapers
  21. march — music
  22. press — a publisher
  23. chest — a box
  24. staff — a stick

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