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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. march — the month
  3. scale — size or range
  4. press — to push
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. press — newspapers
  7. roll — a list
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. land — to come down
  10. march — music
  11. last — finally
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. march — the month
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. press — a publisher
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. land — ground
  20. last — to go on
  21. land — a country
  22. scale — in music
  23. roll — a cake
  24. scale — for weighing

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