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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. march — the month
  3. bound — certain
  4. fine — high quality
  5. fine — all right
  6. deal — to handle
  7. spell — letters
  8. march — music
  9. bound — obliged
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. cap — of ice
  14. spell — a short time
  15. file — a tool
  16. march — the month
  17. file — a document
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bound — tied together
  20. cap — a hat
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. file — a line of people
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. spell — magic

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