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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 124 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. march — the month
  3. object — a thing
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. file — a line of people
  6. bound — obliged
  7. march — music
  8. clip — to cut
  9. object — to protest
  10. file — a document
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. march — the month
  13. last — final
  14. bound — tied together
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. last — finally
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. object — an aim
  19. file — a tool
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bound — certain
  22. last — to go on
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. clip — a video

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