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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 came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. fork — in a road
  3. staff — a stick
  4. staff — employees
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. roll — a list
  7. cell — a phone
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. rash — hasty
  11. staff — employees
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. rash — a series
  17. perch — the fish
  18. march — the month
  19. roll — a cake
  20. cell — in biology
  21. march — the month
  22. board — a committee
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. board — to get on

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