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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 116 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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. spring — the season
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. march — the month
  12. lie — to recline
  13. bass — low music
  14. perch — the fish
  15. chip — for betting
  16. spring — a coil
  17. wound — an injury
  18. chip — to eat
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. spring — of water
  21. wound — an injury
  22. tube — a container
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. tube — the underground

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