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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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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 · rush · bound · wind · mate · cell · deal · drill

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. wind — moving air
  3. drill — a practice
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. bound — tied together
  6. march — music
  7. drill — the tool
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. cell — in biology
  10. wind — moving air
  11. march — the month
  12. mate — to breed
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. bound — certain
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. bound — obliged
  17. rush — hurry
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. mate — a partner
  20. deal — to handle
  21. mate — a friend
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — a phone
  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