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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. march — the month
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. spring — of water
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — to wash
  10. stand — to bear
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. firm — steady
  13. march — music
  14. firm — a company
  15. bass — the fish
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. march — the month
  18. bass — low music
  19. spring — a coil
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. spring — the season
  24. firm — decided

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