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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. band — a music group
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. march — the month
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. last — finally
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. fine — high quality
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. fine — all right
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. march — the month
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. tube — the underground
  19. tube — a container
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. last — to go on
  22. band — a ring
  23. lie — to recline
  24. march — music

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