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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 116 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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. game — a match
  3. march — the month
  4. band — a ring
  5. band — a music group
  6. game — wild animals
  7. row — to paddle
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. march — music
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bound — certain
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bound — obliged
  15. march — the month
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. bound — tied together
  18. row — a line

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