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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. court — for sport
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. spring — of water
  8. court — of a king
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. spring — the season
  11. lean — thin
  12. lean — to bend
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. spring — a coil
  16. roll — a list
  17. roll — a cake
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. court — of law
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bound — certain
  23. bark — to shout
  24. march — music

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