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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: cell · bound · march · rule · wind · deal

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. rule — government
  3. march — the month
  4. wind — moving air
  5. march — music
  6. cell — in biology
  7. march — the month
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. bound — tied together
  11. cell — a phone
  12. bound — certain
  13. rule — a law
  14. wind — moving air
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. deal — to handle
  18. cell — in a prison

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