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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bound — certain
  3. chip — to eat
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. pass — a permit
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. march — the month
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. bound — obliged
  14. chip — for betting
  15. march — music
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a city
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — crushed
  21. band — a ring
  22. bound — tied together
  23. ground — the earth
  24. band — a music group

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