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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bound — tied together
  4. cap — a lid
  5. march — music
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bound — obliged
  8. field — for sport
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. field — farmland
  11. fine — high quality
  12. march — the month
  13. bound — certain
  14. wound — an injury
  15. fine — all right
  16. wound — an injury
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. cap — a hat
  20. cap — of ice
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. field — a subject
  23. date — the fruit
  24. lie — to recline

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