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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 120 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: wound · bass · bay · march · chip · rule

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. 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. bay — a horse colour
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. bass — the fish
  5. chip — for betting
  6. bass — low music
  7. wound — an injury
  8. chip — to eat
  9. march — the month
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. rule — a law
  14. rule — government
  15. wound — an injury
  16. march — music
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. 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