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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: squash · season · hide · tube · march · tear · land · pop

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. season — in sport
  3. pop — soda
  4. tube — a container
  5. tear — from crying
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. season — of the year
  10. pop — to visit
  11. squash — to crush
  12. land — a country
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. pop — music
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. tube — the underground
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. tear — from crying
  22. squash — the sport
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — ground

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