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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pop — soda
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. pop — to visit
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. object — to protest
  7. pop — music
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. march — music
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. chair — a leader
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. last — final
  15. last — finally
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. date — the fruit
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. last — to go on
  20. object — an aim
  21. march — the month
  22. vault — a safe
  23. object — a thing
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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