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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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. march — music
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. tube — a container
  8. march — the month
  9. swing — in golf
  10. mine — for digging
  11. tube — the underground
  12. swing — music
  13. game — a match
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. bank — of a river
  16. march — the month
  17. bank — for money
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. net — in sport
  20. swing — to play on
  21. bank — for money
  22. mate — a partner
  23. net — after costs
  24. mate — to breed

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