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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: present · mark · march · bound · wake · tube · pound · fall

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. mark — a grade
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. tube — the underground
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. present — a gift
  9. march — music
  10. march — the month
  11. tube — a container
  12. fall — the season
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bound — tied together
  15. present — there
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. present — the time now
  18. pound — a weight
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — certain
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. mark — a trace
  24. wake — a trail

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