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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mine — for digging
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. bass — low music
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — for paper

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