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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. march — the month
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. march — music
  5. face — to point toward
  6. field — a subject
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. last — final
  9. pop — soda
  10. face — part of the head
  11. last — to go on
  12. lean — thin
  13. foot — a measure
  14. pop — to visit
  15. field — farmland
  16. last — finally
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. march — the month
  21. lean — to bend
  22. face — to confront
  23. field — for sport
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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