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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. last — final
  3. mark — a grade
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. press — to push
  6. march — the month
  7. press — a publisher
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bore — to tire
  10. bore — to drill
  11. field — for sport
  12. press — newspapers
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. march — the month
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. mark — a trace
  17. field — a subject
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. field — farmland
  21. last — finally
  22. last — to go on
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. plane — a tool

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