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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 120 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. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. court — for sport
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. present — a gift
  5. land — to come down
  6. last — finally
  7. march — the month
  8. last — final
  9. present — there
  10. last — to go on
  11. club — for golf
  12. foot — a measure
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. present — the time now
  15. land — a country
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. march — the month
  18. court — of a king
  19. club — a group
  20. club — for dancing
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. land — ground
  23. court — of law
  24. branch — a division

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