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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. prune — to trim
  3. lean — to bend
  4. face — to point toward
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. key — the most important part
  7. drill — the tool
  8. lean — thin
  9. march — the month
  10. key — for a lock
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — a practice
  13. stock — shares
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. last — to go on
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. key — in music
  18. prune — to trim
  19. march — music
  20. face — to confront
  21. last — final
  22. face — part of the head
  23. stock — goods
  24. last — finally

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