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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. tube — a container
  3. charge — electricity
  4. charge — a price
  5. charge — in control
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. march — the month
  8. bank — of a river
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bank — for money
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — for paper
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. bank — for money
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. ground — a position
  17. tube — the underground
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bass — the fish
  20. march — music
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bass — low music
  23. ground — crushed
  24. clip — to cut

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