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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. file — a tool
  3. march — the month
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — to be able to
  6. bear — the animal
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. bound — certain
  9. bass — the fish
  10. bass — low music
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. bound — tied together
  13. file — a document
  14. land — ground
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. march — the month
  18. land — a country
  19. can — a tin
  20. march — music
  21. land — to come down
  22. file — a line of people
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bound — obliged

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