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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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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. present — there
  3. game — wild animals
  4. march — the month
  5. key — the most important part
  6. march — the month
  7. key — for a lock
  8. rule — government
  9. bound — tied together
  10. march — music
  11. key — in music
  12. bound — certain
  13. rule — a law
  14. bound — obliged
  15. present — the time now
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. present — a gift

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