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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. march — the month
  3. kick — in football
  4. cue — a signal
  5. bound — obliged
  6. last — to go on
  7. march — music
  8. cue — a hint
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. rest — what's left
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. last — final
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. bound — tied together
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. bound — certain
  18. last — finally
  19. march — the month
  20. branch — a division
  21. cue — for pool
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. rest — a break
  24. rest — what's left

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