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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. bound — tied together
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. bound — obliged
  10. chair — a leader
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. snap — to click
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. branch — a division
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. bound — certain
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. march — the month
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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