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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 116 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  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. rush — to hurry
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. bear — the animal
  4. season — of the year
  5. race — a contest
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. face — to point toward
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. march — music
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. band — a ring
  13. band — a music group
  14. rush — hurry
  15. stand — to bear
  16. bear — the animal
  17. face — to confront
  18. season — in sport
  19. face — part of the head
  20. race — the arms race
  21. march — the month
  22. race — humankind
  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