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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 120 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. drill — a practice
  3. drill — army training
  4. wake — a trail
  5. pop — soda
  6. mug — a cup
  7. present — a gift
  8. stock — goods
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. file — a document
  11. stock — shares
  12. march — the month
  13. drill — the tool
  14. file — a line of people
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. march — music
  17. pop — music
  18. mug — to rob
  19. pop — to visit
  20. march — the month
  21. present — there
  22. present — the time now
  23. file — a tool
  24. mug — a face

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