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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 120 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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. march — the month
  3. stand — to bear
  4. cap — of ice
  5. clip — a video
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. march — music
  8. lean — to bend
  9. branch — a division
  10. cap — a hat
  11. object — a thing
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. clip — to cut
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. object — an aim
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. dip — to sink
  18. lean — thin
  19. object — to protest
  20. clip — for paper
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. cap — a lid
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. march — the month

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