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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. cell — a phone
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a partner
  8. bass — the fish
  9. branch — a division
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. cell — in biology
  13. march — the month
  14. fork — in a road
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. march — the month
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. bass — low music
  24. mate — a friend

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