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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  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. racket — a loud noise
  3. clip — a video
  4. bore — to drill
  5. clip — to cut
  6. land — a country
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. suit — to fit
  9. march — the month
  10. march — the month
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. wound — an injury
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. suit — in cards
  15. suit — clothes
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bore — to tire
  18. land — ground
  19. board — to get on
  20. board — a committee
  21. clip — for paper
  22. land — to come down
  23. wound — an injury
  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