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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. bound — certain
  3. march — the month
  4. bank — for money
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bank — for money
  7. bark — to shout
  8. march — the month
  9. clip — a video
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bank — of a river
  12. clip — for paper
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. spring — of water
  15. lie — to recline
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. hand — help
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bound — tied together
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — the season

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