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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. field — a subject
  4. pop — music
  5. race — the arms race
  6. pop — to visit
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. march — the month
  9. rock — music
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. pop — soda
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. field — for sport
  15. race — humankind
  16. rock — a stone
  17. field — farmland
  18. content — the amount
  19. march — music
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. content — happy
  23. race — a contest
  24. stem — to come from

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