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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. fall — to drop
  3. last — final
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. fall — the season
  7. march — the month
  8. last — to go on
  9. fall — to drop
  10. last — finally
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. season — in sport
  13. mark — a grade
  14. march — the month
  15. squash — to crush
  16. mark — a trace
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. squash — the sport
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. foot — a measure
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. season — of the year

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