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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. field — farmland
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. ball — a dance
  6. wake — a trail
  7. tear — from crying
  8. ball — a great time
  9. roll — a list
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. march — the month
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. field — for sport
  14. tear — from crying
  15. deal — to handle
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. field — a subject
  20. tear — to rip
  21. march — the month
  22. roll — a cake
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. roll — on a roll

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