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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. fall — to drop
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. spring — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. march — the month
  11. foot — a measure
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. spring — of water
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. fine — all right
  16. spring — a coil
  17. march — the month
  18. fine — high quality
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. fall — the season
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. coach — a trainer

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