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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. branch — a division
  6. march — music
  7. court — of a king
  8. season — in sport
  9. march — the month
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. season — of the year
  12. pitch — completely
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bound — certain
  16. fine — high quality
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. march — the month
  19. court — of law
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — obliged
  23. court — for sport
  24. fine — all right

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