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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: shower · march · stand · clip · bay · cell · pit · stick

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — in biology
  5. clip — for paper
  6. march — the month
  7. cell — a phone
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. clip — to cut
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. shower — to wash
  15. stand — to bear
  16. march — the month
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pit — in a race
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. clip — a video
  24. bay — a horse colour

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