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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. tear — from crying
  4. degree — from a university
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. content — happy
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. tear — to rip
  9. degree — temperature
  10. march — the month
  11. dip — to sink
  12. content — the amount
  13. field — a subject
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. bank — for money
  17. field — for sport
  18. bank — of a river
  19. field — farmland
  20. toast — bread
  21. degree — an amount
  22. march — the month
  23. bank — for money
  24. tear — from crying

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