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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. file — a line of people
  3. spring — of water
  4. club — for dancing
  5. press — to push
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. press — newspapers
  8. wax — to grow
  9. press — a publisher
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. club — a group
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a tool
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. spring — the season
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. march — the month
  21. club — for golf
  22. spring — a coil
  23. march — the month
  24. fan — a supporter

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