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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mark — a trace
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. march — the month
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — a phone
  9. key — for a lock
  10. tube — the underground
  11. key — the most important part
  12. march — the month
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bat — the animal
  17. march — music
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tube — a container
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. cell — in biology
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. key — in music
  24. saw — the tool

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