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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. mark — a grade
  3. march — the month
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bear — the animal
  6. march — music
  7. cell — a phone
  8. squash — to crush
  9. rash — hasty
  10. board — a committee
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. cold — an illness
  13. board — to get on
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. rash — a series
  17. mark — a trace
  18. cell — in biology
  19. march — the month
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. cold — not warm
  22. squash — the sport
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. cold — the Cold War

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