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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: sharp · march · rest · wound · lie · club · rule · bass

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. march — music
  3. club — a group
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. rest — what's left
  6. lie — to recline
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. bass — the fish
  9. march — the month
  10. club — for golf
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. bass — low music
  13. rest — what's left
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. club — for dancing
  16. rule — government
  17. wound — an injury
  18. march — the month
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. rule — a law
  21. wound — an injury
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. rest — a break

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