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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. march — the month
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. prune — to trim
  6. charge — a price
  7. bound — obliged
  8. charge — electricity
  9. bound — certain
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bass — low music
  12. charge — in control
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bound — tied together
  15. march — the month
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. roll — a cake
  18. march — music
  19. prune — to trim
  20. chest — of your body
  21. roll — a list
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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