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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 · court · arm · tear · face · bass · current · stick

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. tear — to rip
  3. current — electric
  4. bass — low music
  5. court — for sport
  6. face — part of the head
  7. current — of water
  8. current — happening now
  9. face — to confront
  10. court — of law
  11. march — the month
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bass — the fish
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. face — to point toward
  17. march — music
  18. court — of a king
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. tear — from crying

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