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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  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. rock — music
  2. clip — a video
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. drill — a practice
  6. stand — to bear
  7. drill — the tool
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. clip — for paper
  10. march — the month
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. rock — a stone
  13. craft — boats
  14. ground — the earth
  15. craft — a skill
  16. march — music
  17. drill — army training
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. clip — to cut
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — crushed
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. stand — on your feet
  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