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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  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. march — music
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. rash — hasty
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. bulb — for light
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. file — a tool
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. file — a document
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. rash — a series
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bulb — for light
  17. file — a line of people
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. row — to paddle
  22. march — the month
  23. row — a line
  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