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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. rule — a law
  4. march — music
  5. suit — to fit
  6. cell — a phone
  7. ground — crushed
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. chest — of your body
  10. cell — in biology
  11. suit — in cards
  12. chest — of your body
  13. band — a music group
  14. march — the month
  15. mark — a trace
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. band — a ring
  18. march — the month
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — the earth
  21. rule — government
  22. chest — a box
  23. mark — a grade
  24. suit — clothes

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