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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: can · rock · tear · prune · cell · bound · ground · march

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  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. march — music
  2. ground — the earth
  3. rock — a stone
  4. ground — crushed
  5. tear — from crying
  6. can — to be able to
  7. bound — certain
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. cell — in biology
  10. can — a tin
  11. tear — to rip
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. march — the month
  14. rock — music
  15. ground — a position
  16. prune — to trim
  17. can — a tin
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cell — a phone
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bound — obliged
  23. bound — tied together
  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