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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: march · roll · pound · bound · cell · race

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. race — the arms race
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bound — tied together
  6. cell — a phone
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. race — humankind
  9. march — the month
  10. bound — obliged
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. roll — a list
  13. roll — a cake
  14. bound — certain
  15. pound — a weight
  16. march — music
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. race — a contest

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