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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. land — to come down
  3. spring — of water
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — the season
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. land — ground
  10. court — of a king
  11. bound — certain
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. land — a country
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. plane — a tool
  16. march — music
  17. mine — for digging
  18. march — the month
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. court — for sport
  22. bound — obliged
  23. court — of law
  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