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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. march — music
  3. cell — in biology
  4. last — finally
  5. last — to go on
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. face — to point toward
  8. root — the cause
  9. face — to confront
  10. last — final
  11. cell — a phone
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — of a plant
  14. march — the month
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. rest — what's left
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. face — part of the head
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. rest — what's left
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. march — the month
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. rest — a break

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