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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. rock — music
  3. bound — obliged
  4. mate — a partner
  5. bound — certain
  6. scale — in music
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — to breed
  9. season — in sport
  10. bound — tied together
  11. march — music
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. scale — size or range
  15. march — the month
  16. branch — a division
  17. track — to keep track
  18. track — a path
  19. march — the month
  20. rock — a stone
  21. season — of the year
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. rock — to move gently

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