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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. row — a line
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. march — the month
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. scale — in music
  7. net — for catching
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. net — after costs
  10. band — a music group
  11. net — in sport
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. band — a ring
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — moving air
  17. march — music
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. cap — a hat
  20. scale — size or range
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cap — a lid
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — to paddle

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