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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 116 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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. last — final
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. fall — the season
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. march — music
  7. track — to keep track
  8. stand — to bear
  9. fall — to drop
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — finally
  12. shower — to wash
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. rock — a stone
  16. march — the month
  17. rock — music
  18. fall — to drop
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. march — the month
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. track — a song
  23. track — a path
  24. stand — for spectators

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