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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. bound — certain
  3. court — for sport
  4. bound — obliged
  5. spell — letters
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. court — of a king
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. bound — tied together
  11. spell — a short time
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. march — the month
  14. season — in sport
  15. bulb — for light
  16. court — of law
  17. drill — army training
  18. bulb — for light
  19. drill — the tool
  20. season — of the year
  21. march — music
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. spell — magic
  24. march — the month

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