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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. track — a song
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. last — to go on
  5. march — the month
  6. last — final
  7. lean — to bend
  8. track — to keep track
  9. content — the amount
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. key — the most important part
  14. cell — a phone
  15. march — the month
  16. track — a path
  17. lean — thin
  18. key — for a lock
  19. cell — in biology
  20. content — happy
  21. key — in music
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. last — finally
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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