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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. pit — in a race
  3. band — a music group
  4. branch — a division
  5. march — music
  6. pop — to visit
  7. pit — a hole
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. march — the month
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. march — the month
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bound — certain
  15. bound — tied together
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pop — music
  18. pop — soda
  19. prune — to trim
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. rash — a series
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. rash — hasty

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