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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 120 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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. bound — certain
  3. file — a tool
  4. court — of a king
  5. bore — to tire
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. perch — the fish
  8. bank — for money
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. file — a document
  11. march — the month
  12. court — for sport
  13. bore — to drill
  14. wind — moving air
  15. court — of law
  16. bank — for money
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bank — of a river
  23. march — the month
  24. file — a line of people

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