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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bound — certain
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bass — low music
  6. bear — the animal
  7. march — the month
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. bound — tied together
  10. plane — a tool
  11. drill — army training
  12. bear — the animal
  13. season — of the year
  14. bass — the fish
  15. season — in sport
  16. bound — obliged
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. drill — the tool
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. march — music
  24. plane — in geometry

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