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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: march · bound · cell · current · fine · wax · bowl · bat

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. march — music
  3. current — happening now
  4. fine — high quality
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. march — the month
  9. current — of water
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bound — certain
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. cell — in biology
  15. march — the month
  16. cell — a phone
  17. current — electric
  18. bound — obliged
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. wax — to grow
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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