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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. bound — tied together
  3. capital — a city
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. bound — certain
  6. court — of a king
  7. bound — obliged
  8. court — for sport
  9. land — a country
  10. march — the month
  11. tear — to rip
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. fall — the season
  14. land — ground
  15. tear — from crying
  16. capital — money
  17. march — the month
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. fall — to drop
  20. court — of law
  21. land — to come down
  22. tear — from crying
  23. fall — to drop
  24. racket — for tennis

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