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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. dip — to sink
  3. row — a line
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. row — to paddle
  6. lean — to bend
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. clip — a video
  11. march — the month
  12. clip — for paper
  13. prune — to trim
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. lean — thin
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. clip — to cut
  19. prune — to trim
  20. file — a document
  21. file — a line of people
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. file — a tool
  24. march — the month

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