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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. press — newspapers
  5. chest — a box
  6. degree — an amount
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mark — a grade
  9. march — the month
  10. degree — temperature
  11. press — a publisher
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. press — to push
  14. degree — from a university
  15. mark — a trace
  16. march — the month
  17. roll — a cake
  18. toast — bread
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. roll — a list
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bark — to shout
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. march — music

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