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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rest — what's left
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. land — a country
  8. march — the month
  9. land — to come down
  10. land — ground
  11. rest — a break
  12. charge — electricity
  13. wake — a trail
  14. content — happy
  15. content — the amount
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. charge — a price
  19. rest — what's left
  20. firm — steady
  21. firm — decided
  22. charge — in control
  23. march — the month
  24. firm — a company

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