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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. face — to point toward
  4. march — music
  5. face — to confront
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bound — certain
  8. band — a ring
  9. march — the month
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. face — part of the head
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. season — in sport
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. bound — obliged
  17. season — of the year
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. dip — to sink
  21. bound — tied together
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. band — a music group
  24. march — the month

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