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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: leaves · mine · march · rule · cabinet · bound · band · saw

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. saw — the tool
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. mine — for digging
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. band — a ring
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. march — music
  9. bound — tied together
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. saw — the tool
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. bound — certain
  20. bound — obliged
  21. march — the month
  22. rule — a law
  23. rule — government
  24. band — a music group

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