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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  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 — music
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. last — final
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. press — newspapers
  6. pop — to visit
  7. march — the month
  8. file — a line of people
  9. chair — a leader
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. file — a document
  12. march — the month
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. pop — soda
  15. pop — music
  16. dip — to sink
  17. last — to go on
  18. press — a publisher
  19. press — to push
  20. file — a tool
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. nail — for a hammer
  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