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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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Word bank
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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: bass · bound · cold · net · march · stick · mouse · spell

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. bound — tied together
  3. cold — an illness
  4. march — the month
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. net — after costs
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. spell — magic
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. bound — obliged
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bass — low music
  14. spell — letters
  15. march — the month
  16. spell — a short time
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. march — music
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — in sport
  22. cold — not warm
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. bound — certain

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