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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. march — the month
  3. band — a music group
  4. band — a ring
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. bat — the animal
  7. march — music
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. plane — a tool
  12. bear — the animal
  13. saw — the tool
  14. march — the month
  15. rule — government
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rule — a law
  19. branch — a division
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. bear — the animal

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